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*"  >t*>;iAp"-.J  frnm  ih*  Fiinting 


John  Ancircw  ^ Son,  So. 


I5ARTOLOME  ESTlb)AN  MURILLO  (P,y  Himself) 
i 'ollection  of  the  Earl  of  Spencer^  AKhorf,  England 


MURILLO 

A COLLECTION  OF  FIFTEEN  PICTURES 

AND  A PORTRAIT  OF  THE  PAINTER 

WITH  INTRODUCTION  AND 
INTERPRETATION 

BY 

ESTELLE  M.  HURLL 


BOSTON  AND  NEW  YORK 
HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND  COMPANY 
(Cfee  mibersitJe  Ure??,  (!i:ambcib0e 
1901 


COPYRIGHT,  1900,  BY  HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  & CO. 
ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED 


PREFACE 


As  most  of  the  important  works  of  Murillo  treat  reli- 
gious subjects  it  is  unnecessary  to  apologize  for  the  lack 
of  variety  in  the  selections  here  made.  The  object  has 
been  to  show  as  far  as  possible  the  range  of  his  artistic 
power  and  the  diversity  of  his  methods.  From  the  strict 
realism  of  his  genre  pictures  to  the  high  idealism  of  the 
Immaculate  Conception,  nearly  every  phase  of  Murillo’s 
work  is  represented  in  this  little  collection. 

ESTELLE  M.  HURLL. 


New  Bedford,  Mass. 
November,  1900. 


r 


CONTENTS  AND  LIST  OF  PICTUKES 


PAGE 

Portrait  of  Murillo.  Painted  by  himself.  (Frontispiece^ 

From  Photograph  of  the  Painting  in  the  Althorp 
Gallery. 

Introduction. 

I.  On  Murillo’s  Character  as  an  Artist  . . . vii 

II.  On  Books  of  Reference xi 

m.  Historical  Directory  of  the  Pictures  of  this 

Collection xii 

IV.  Outline  Table  of  the  Principal  Events  in 

Murillo’s  Life xiv 

V.  Contemporary  Painters . . xv 

I.  The  Immaculate  Conception  . . 1 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

II.  The  Angels’  Kitchen 7 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

III.  Boy  at  the  Window 13 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Cldment  & Co. 

IV.  The  Adoration  of  the  Shepherds 19 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Cldment  & Co. 

V.  The  Madonna  and  Child 25 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

VI.  Rebekah  and  Eliezer  at  the  Well 31 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

VII.  The  Dice  Players 37 

Picture  from  Photograph  by  Franz  Hanfstaengl. 

VIII.  The  Education  of  the  Virgin 43 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

IX.  Jesus  and  John  (The  Children  of  the  Shell)  . 49 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

X.  The  Holy  Family 65 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

XI.  The  Fruit  Venders 61 

Picture  from  Photograph  by  Franz  Hanfstaengl. 


CONTENTS 


XII.  The  Vision  of  St.  Anthony 67 

Picture  from  Photograph  by  Franz  Hanfstaengl. 

XIII.  St.  Kodekick 73 

Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

XIV.  Youth’s  Head 79 


Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 

XV.  St.  Elizaheth  of  Hungary  (The  Lepp:r)  ....  85 
Picture  from  Carbon  Print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 
XVI.  The  Portrait  of  Murillo  (See  Frontispiece)  ...  91 
Pronouncing  Vocabulary  of  Proper  Names  and 
Foreign  Words 95 


INTRODUCTION 


I.  ON  MURILLO’S  CHARACTER  AS  AN  ARTIST 

In  the  art  of  Murillo  it  is  possible  to  trace  the  combined 
influences  of  his  period,  his  nationality,  and  his  individual 
temperament.  The  seventeenth  century  was  a time  when 
the  religious  fervor  which  has  been  the  leading  factor  in 
Spanish  history  sought  expression  in  art.  Money  was 
poured  forth  freely  for  the  beautifying  of  churches  and 
convents.  There  was  a great  demand  for  pictures  illus- 
trative of  sacred  story.  It  was  these  circumstances  which 
determined  the  direction  of  Murillo’s  energy.  His  sub- 
jects were  dictated  by  his  orders : it  was  a case  of  supply 
and  demand. 

Given  religious  subjects  to  paint,  he  imbued  his  work 
with  the  strong  emotional  character  which  he  shared  with 
his  race.  The  ardent  temperament,  the  semi-oriental 
love  of  color  and  sensuous  beauty  characteristic  of  all 
Spaniards,  was  nowhere  stronger  than  in  Andalusia, 
and  Murillo  was  a true  son  of  the  soil. 

But  nature  had  gifted  Murillo  with  a striking  individu- 
ality. By  temperament  he  was  a realist;  for  human 
nature  as  he  saw  it  about  him  he  had  a love  amounting 
almost  to  a passion.  All  the  accessories  of  his  composi- 
tions, such  as  fruit,  flowers,  animals,  household  utensils, 
and  the  like,  he  finished  with  loving  minuteness.  It  was 
this  bent  towards  realism  which  gave  the  distinguishing- 
mark  of  individuality  to  his  methods.  Strongly  as  his 


MURILLO 


viii 

work  was  tinged  with  his  nationality  it  was  nevertheless 
the  work  of  Murillo  the  man. 

It  may  approximate  the  truth  concerning  the  influences 
of  which  his  art  was  the  product  to  state  the  case  thus  : 
In  subject  matter  and  in  general  character  it  was  shaped 
by  the  external  influences  of  his  nationality  and  environ- 
ment ; in  method  it  was  peculiarly  his  own. 

It  is  when  we  turn  to  his  purely  (jenre  subjects  that  we 
see  what  Murillo  might  have  been  if  working  under  other 
conditions.  How  thoroughly  alive  are  his  beg’gar  boys  ; 
how  deliciously  human  their  gesture  and  attitude  ; what 
humor  lurks  in  their  knowing  smiles ! Such  studies  con- 
firm us  in  the  belief  that  nature  made  him  a genre  painter, 
Init  circumstances  forced  him  into  religious  art. 

His  Old  Testament  subjects  were  treated  after  the  genre 
manner.  The  ])astoral  life  of  ancient  Syria  was  inter- 
j)reted  by  the  peasant  life  of  Andalusia  in  the  seventeenth 
century.  The  picture  of  Rebecca  and  Eliezer  at  the  AVell 
is  a transcript  from  real  life,  full  of  picturesque  local 
color.  Even  in  such  subjects  as  the  Madonna  and  Child 
and  the  Adoration  of  the  Shepherds,  the  religious  senti- 
ment is  rendered  in  a vein  of  homely  realism. 

But  there  are  other  pictures  by  Murillo  which  reveal  a 
higher  reach  of  imagination  than  would  have  seemed  pos- 
sible. In  such  works  as  Jesus  and  John,  the  Vision  of 
St.  Anthony,  and  above  all  in  the  Immaculate  Concep- 
tion, the  artist  shows  a rare  degree  of  idealizing  ])ower. 
Though  nature  made  him  a realist,  faith  transformed  him 
at  times  into  an  idealist. 

Murillo’s  artistic  qualities  are  such  as  make  a popular 
favorite.  He  is  the  people’s  painter  rather  than  the 
artist’s  ])ainter.  The  critic  misses  in  his  work  that  force 
and  virility  which  belong  to  great  art,  but  the  average 
taste,  undisturbed  by  this  lack,  is  attracted  at  once  by  his 
story-telling  gifts  and  his  sentiment.  What  is  wanting 


INTRODUCTION 


IX 


in  strength  is  abundantly  made  up  in  sweetness.  Nor  can 
Murillo  be  justly  charged  with  lack  of  force  by  those  who 
know  the  full  range  of  his  power.  What  vigorous  por- 
trait delineation  he  was  capable  of  we  ^ee  in  the  Educa- 
tion of  the  Virgin.  In  strength  of  characterization  the 
old  crone  in  the  picture  of  St.  Elizabeth  compares  favor- 
ably with  the  egg-woman  of  Titian’s  Presentation  of  the 
Virgin,  or  with  some  of  Rembrandt’s  old  women. 

It  is  customary  to  distinguish  three  artistic  methods  of 
Murillo’s  work,  not  indeed  always  corresponding  exactly 
to  three  successive  chronological  periods,  but  used  in  turn 
by  the  artist  for  different  classes  of  subjects.  There  is 
the  cold  style,  the  estilofrio^  of  his  earlier  works,  in  which 
the  color  is  sombre  and  the  outlines  are  hard.  Much  of  the 
genre  work  is  in  this  manner.  The  warm  style,  the  estilo 
calido^  is  in  deeper  color  and  stronger  contrast  of  light 
and  shadow.  In  the  misty  or  aerial  manner,  the  estilo 
vaporoso^  his  tints  melt  into  one  another,  and  in  some 
mysterious  way  a golden  haze  seems  to  envelop  the  figures. 
This  is  the  style  of  work  in  which  the  picture  of  Jesus 
and  John  is  painted.  It  would  of  course  be  impossible  to 
classify  all  Murillo’s  paintings  in  three  groups,  and  there 
is  danger  of  forcing  these  distinctions  in  his  styles.  It  is 
enough  to  indicate  the  three  tendencies  corresponding  to 
three  of  his  moods. 

It  may  help  us  to  understand  Murillo’s  art  to  compare 
him  with  other  great  painters  with  whom  he  had  traits 
in  common.  His  self -chosen  teachers  were  Ribera,  Van 
Dyck,  and  Velasquez.  Titian  and  Rubens  were  also  among 
the  masters  whoso  works  in  the  Madrid  Gallery  attracted 
his  attention.  Yet  when  he  returned  to  Seville,  the  influ- 
ence of  all  these  masters  seemed  to  drop  from  him.  He 
could  on  occasion  show  himself  a clever  imitator,  as  in  the 
Rebecca  and  Eliezer,  which  recalls  so  strongly  the  style  of 
Rubens.  But  his  own  individuality  was  too  well  defined 
to  be  absorbed  in  other  masters. 


X 


MURILLO 


The  same  metamorphosis  of  a born  genre  painter  into  a 
reliirioiis  artist  was  seen  two  centuries  before  Murillo’s 
time  in  the  history  of  Filippo  Lippi.  There  is  a close 
atbnity  between  the  Tuscan  peasant  girls  who  figure  as 
Filippo’s  Madonnas  and  the  Andalusian  maidens  of 
Murillo’s  works.  Yet  the  comparison  cannot  be  carried 
far,  because  Murillo  possessed  a personal  piety  appar- 
ently lacking  in  Filippo  Lippi,  so  that  there  is  genuine 
religious  feeling  in  Murillo’s  pictures  which  we  do  not 
always  find  in  Filippo’s  works. 

Among  the  Italians  Perugino  is  perhaps  the  nearest 
akin  to  Murillo  in  his  power  to  awaken  devotional  senti- 
ment. There  is  a parallel  between  the  lives  of  the  two 
painters  in  the  spontaneous  praise  awarded  them  by  the 
voice  of  the  people.  Both  were  the  popular  idols  of  their 
own  generation. 

There  was,  however,  a painter  of  Murillo’s  own  time 
who  had  more  in  common  with  him  than  any  other  painter 
before  or  since.  This  was  Kembrandt.  Perhaps  the  two 
were  as  much  alike  as  a Spaniard  and  Dutchman  could 
well  be.  Allowing  for  differences  in  nationality  and 
religion  they  had  the  same  general  aims.  Both  were  in- 
tensely human  in  their  sympathies ; the  picturesqueness  of 
beggars,  the  poetry  and  pathos  of  age,  the  charm  of  the 
commonplace,  appealed  strongly  to  both.  Both  took  natu- 
rally the  same  view-point  of  homely  realism.  Both  recog- 
nized with  the  “ insight  of  genius  ” that  “ biblical  history 
and  the  legends  of  the  saints  could  be  best  narrated  in 
the  dialect  of  the  people.”  ^ 

The  faults  of  the  two  men  led  in  diametrically  opposite 
directions.  Murillo  sometimes  carried  sweetness  to  in- 
sipidity, and  Rembrandt  sometimes  exaggerated  homeli- 
ness into  grotesqueness.  As  Murillo’s  work  was  modified 
by  the  Spanish  love  of  color  and  sensuous  beauty,  so 
^ Carl  Justi. 


INTRODUCTION 


XI 


Rembrandt’s  was  shaped  by  the  phlegmatic  temperament 
of  the  Dutch. 

After  all  comparisons  are  exhausted  perhaps  Murillo’s 
place  cannot  be  assigned  in  any  better  phrase  than  one 
which  has  often  been  repeated.  His  works  “ hold  a mid- 
dle rank  between  the  unpolished  naturalness  of  the  Flem- 
ish, and  the  peaceful  and  dignified  taste  of  the  Italian 
school.”  ^ 


II.  BOOKS  OF  REFERENCE 

The  original  source  of  material  relating  to  Spanish 
art  is  a dictionary  of  painters  (“  Diccionario  historico  ”) 
written  by  Cean  Bermudez,  himself  a painter,  and  pub- 
lished in  Madrid  in  1800.  The  only  comprehensive  work 
on  the  subject  in  English  is  the  “ Annals  of  the  Artists  of 
Spain  ” by  Stirling  Maxwell,  first  published  in  England 
in  1848  and  reprinted  in  1891,  in  four  large  volumes. 
Some  116  pages  of  volume  iii.  are  devoted  to  Murillo, 
and  the  appendix  of  the  last  volume  contains  a complete 
list  of  Murillo’s  works.  Both  editions  being  rare  and 
valuable  the  student  can  use  them  only  in  the  large  libra- 
ries, and  the  general  reader  must  be  content  with  the 
short  biographies  compiled  from  this  source.  Two  of 
these  which  are  generally  available  are  by  Mrs.  E.  E. 
Minor  in  the  Great  Artists’  Series  (New  York,  1882) 
and  by  M.  F.  Sweetser  in  Series  of  Artists’  Biographies, 
(Boston,  1877).  There  is  also  an  interesting  German 
monograph  on  Murillo  by  H.  Knackfuss,  in  the  series  of 
Kiinstler-Monographien  (Leipsic,  1897),  illustrated  by 
sixty-seven  half  tones. 

An  excellent  summary  of  Murillo’s  art  is  made  by 
Yiardot,  in  a small  volume  called  the  “Wonders  of 
European  Art.”  Spooner’s  “ Dictionary  of  Painters  and 

1 From  Spooner’s  Dictionary. 


MUKILLO 


xii 

Engravers  ” also  has  a good  article  on  Murillo  and  his 
Art,  and  Carl  Justi’s  “ Historical  Sketch  of  Spanish  Art,” 
printed  as  an  introduction  to  Ihedeker’s  “ Spain,”  discrim- 
inates carefully  Murillo’s  three  methods,  with  examples  of 
each.  xV  descriptive  list  of  Murillo’s  works  was  made  by 
C.  B.  Curtis,  and  published  in  New  York  in  1883,  as  a 
“Catalogue  of  the  Works  of  Velasquez  and  Murillo.” 


HI.  HISTORICAL  DIRECTORY  OF  THE  PICTURES 
OF  THIS  COLLECTION 


Poi'tr  ait  frontispiece.  Painted  by  Murillo  when  about 
sixty  years  of  age,  at  the  request  of  his  children,  and 
bearing  the  following  Latin  inscription  : “ Bartus  Murillo 
seii)suni  depingens  pro  filiorum  votis  acprecibus  explen- 
dis.”  The  original  is  in  the  possession  of  the  Earl  of 
Spencer,  xVlthorp,  England,  and  a copy  by  Miguel  de 
Tobar  is  in  the  Prado  Gallery,  Madrid. 

1.  The  Immaculate  Conception.  Painted  in  1678  for 
the  Hospital  of  the  Venerables,  whence  it  was  carried  to 
F’rance  by  Marshal  Soult.  Acquired  by  the  Louvre 
(Paris)  ill  1852.  Size  : about  10  ft.x6  ft. 

2.  The  Ancjels'’  Kitchen.  One  of  the  series  of  pictures 
painted  1645-1648  for  the  Franciscan  Convent  behind 
the  Casa  del  Ayuntamiento  in  Seville.  Bears  the  artist’s 
signature  and  date  1646.  F'rom  the  collection  of  Marshal 
Soult.  Acquired  in  1858  by  the  Louvre,  Paris.  Size: 
5 ft.  11  in.X  14  ft.  9 in. 

3.  Boy  at  the  Window.  Formerly  in  the  collection 
of  the  iMarquis  of  Lansdowne,  and  presented  to  the  Eng- 
lish nation  in  1826  by  M.  Zachary,  Esq.  Now  in  the 
National  Gallery,  London.  Bust,  life  size.  Size  : 1 ft. 
9 in.X  1 ft.  3 in. 

4.  The  Adoration  of  the  Shepherds.  Painted  in 


INTRODUCTION 


xm 


Murillo’s  “ second  manner.”  Taken  to  Paris  by  the 
French,  but  restored  in  1816  and  now  in  the  Prado  Gal- 
lery, Madrid.  Size  : 6 ft.  8 J in.  X 8 ft.  2 in. 

5.  Madonna  and  Child,  In  the  Corsini  Gallery,  Pome. 
Figures  full  length  and  life  size.  Size:  5 ft.  4^  in.X 
3 ft.  61 

6.  Rebecca  and  Eliezer  at  the  Well.  Purchased  at 
Seville  by  Philip  V.  in  1729.  Now  in  the  Prado  Gallery, 
Madrid.  In  the  “ second  manner,”  showing  transition  to 
better  style.  Figures  full  length  and  about  a third  life 
size.  Size  : 3 ft.  10  in.  X 5 ft.  5 in. 

7.  The  Dice  Players.  In  the  Munich  Gallery.  Fig- 
ures life  size.  Size : 4 ft.  6 in.  X 3 ft.  4 in. 

8.  The  Education  of  the  Virgin.  Painted  in  1674. 
Formerly  in  the  chapel  royal  at  St.  Ildefonso  and  now  in 
the  Prado  Gallery,  Madrid.  Figures  life  size.  Size : 7 ft. 
10  in.X 5 ft.  1 in. 

9.  Jesus  and  John  {The  Children  of  the  Shell). 
Painted  in  the  ^‘vaporoso  manner.”  In  the  Prado  Gal- 
lery, Madrid.  Size : 3 ft.  8^  in.  X 4 ft.  5^  in. 

10.  The  Holy  Family.,  signed  “ Barholm  de  Murillo 
F.  Hispan,”  but  without  date.  According  to  Curtis 
painted  about  1670.  Once  in  the  collection  of  Louis 
XVI.  and  now  in  the  Louvre,  Paris.  Size  : 7 ft.  10|^  in. 
X 6 ft.  2|  in. 

11.  The  Fruit  Venders.  In  the  Munich  Gallery. 
Figures  life  size.  Size : 4 ft.  7 in.  X 3 ft.  5^  in. 

12.  The  Vision  of  St.  Anthony.  Perhaps  the  picture 
mentioned  by  Cean  Bermudez  as  belonging  to  the  convent 
of  San  Pedro  Alcantara  at  Seville,  whence  it  was  taken 
by  Soult  in  1810.  Now  in  the  Berlin  Gallery.  Figures 
life  size.  Size  : 5 ft.  4 in.  X 6 ft.  5f  in. 

13.  St.  Roderick.  Painted,  according  to  Ford,  for  a 
canon  at  Seville  by  whom  the  dress  was  worn  on  grand 
occasions.  At  one  time  in  the  convent  of  St.  Clara  in 


XIV 


MURILLO 


Seville,  and  later  in  the  Louis  Philippe  Collection.  Now 
in  the  Dresden  Gallery.  In  the  “second  manner.”  Size  : 
7 ft.  4 in.X  4 ft.  10  in. 

14.  A YautJiS  Head,  (called  also  a Herd  Boy  or 
Shepherd^.  Probably  purchased  from  the  sale  of  Gen- 
eral Pothier’s  Collection  in  1846,  and  now  in  the  Hague 
Museum.  Size:  17  in.X  15  in. 

15.  St.  Elizabeth  of  lluny  ary  (^The  Leper).  Painted 
as  a companion  piece  of  San  Juan  de  Dios  for  the  Hos- 
pital of  Charity  at  Seville,  Murillo  receiving  in  1674, 
16,840  reals  for  the  two  pictures.  It  was  taken  from  the 
hospital  by  Marshal  Soult,  restored  to  Spain  in  1814, 
and  since  then  has  hung  in  the  Koyal  Academy  of  Fine 
Arts  (formerly  San  Fernando),  Madrid.  The  original 
study  for  the  painting,  a small  sketch  on  wood,  10JX6| 
inches,  is  owned  in  America.  The  j)ainting  is  said  to 
unite  the  excellencies  of  Murillo’s  three  styles,  more 
especially  the  frio  and  calido.  Figures  life  size.  Size : 
13  ft.  in.  X 10  ft.  6 in. 

IV.  OUTLINE  TABLE  OF  THE  PRINCIPAL  EVENTS 
IN  MURILLO’S  LIFE 

1617.  Murillo  born  at  Seville. 

1618.  Murillo  baptized  New  Year’s  Day. 

1639-40.  Termination  of  Murillo’s  instructions  under 
Castillo. 

1642-1645.  Visit  in  Madrid,  studying  the  works  of 
Ribera,  Van  Dyck,  and  Velasquez. 

1645.  Return  to  Seville. 

1645-1648.  Eleven  large  pictures  painted  for  the  Fran- 
ciscan convent,  Seville,  including  the  Death  of 
St.  Clara  and  the  Angels’  Kitchen. 

1648.  Murillo  married  to  Dona  Beatriz  de  Cabrera  y 
Sotomayor. 


INTRODUCTION 


XV 


1652.  Our  Lady  of  the  Conception,  first  painting  in 
“ warm  manner  ” painted  for  Brotherhood  of 
True  Cross. 

1655.  St.  Leander  and  St.  Isidore. 

1656.  Vision  of  St.  Anthony  painted.  Four  large  semi- 

circular pictures  for  Church  of  Sta.  Maria  la 
Blanca. 

1660.  Foundation  of  the  Academy  of  Seville,  with 
Murillo  as  president. 

1670-1674.  Eleven  works  for  the  newly  erected  Charity 
Hospital,  Seville.  Same  period,  upwards  of 
twenty  pictures  for  Capuchin  Convent,  Seville. 

1676.  Murillo’s  daughter  Francisca  became  Dominican 
nun. 

1678.  Three  pictures  painted  for  the  Hospital  de  los 
Venerables,  Seville,  including  the  Immaculate 
Conception,  now  in  the  Louvre. 

1682.  Death  of  Murillo  April  3. 

Note : Murillo  had  two  sons,  Gabriel,  who  was  in  the 

Indies  when  his  father  died,  and  Gaspar,  who  was  a priest. 

The  dates  of  their  birth  are  not  recorded  in  the  biogra- 
phies. 


V.  CONTEMPORARY  PAINTERS 

SPANISH 

Francesco  de  Herrara,  the  elder  (1576-1656). 
Francesco  de  Zurbaran  (1596-1662). 

Diego  Velasquez  (1599-1660). 

Alonso  Cano  (1601-1667). 

Sebastian  Martinez  (1602-1667). 

Antonio  del  Castillo  (1603-1667). 

Joseph  de  Sarabia  (1608-1669). 

Pedro  de  Moya  (1610-1666). 

Juan  de  Toledo  (1611-1665). 


XVI 


MURILLO 


Associates  in  Seville  Academy  : — 

Francisco  de  Ilerrara,  the  younger,  president  (16G0). 
Llanos  y Valdes,  president  (1GG3,  IGGG,  1GG9). 
rJuan  de  Valdes,  president  (1GG4  et  seq.). 

Pedro  de  Medina  Valbiiena,  president  (1GG7,  IGTl). 

,Juan  Chamarro,  president  (1G70). 

Cornelius  Schut,  1G72-1G73. 

^Matias  de  Carbajal,  one  time  steward. 

Pulencia. 

Ignacio  de  Iriarte,  secretary  (IGGO,  1GG7-1GG9). 
Fernando  Marquez  Joya,  member  (1GG8-1G72),  imitator 
of  Murillo. 

Pupils : — 

IVIiguel  de  Tobar. 

Nunez  de  Villavicencio. 

Menesis  Osorio. 

Sebastian  Gomez. 


FLEMISH 

Peter  Paul  Kubens  (1577-1G40). 
Anthony  Van  Dyck  (1599-1G41). 
Jacob  Jordaens  (1594-1G78). 
Franz  Snyders  (1574-1G57). 
Gaspard  de  Craeyer  (1582-1GG9). 
David  Teniers  (1G10-1G90). 

DUTCH 

Rembrandt  (1G0G-1GG9). 

Franz  Hals  (1584-lGGG). 

Gerard  Ilonthorst  (1590-1G5G). 
Albert  Cuyp  (1G05-1G91). 

Jacob  Ruysdael  (1G25-1G82). 


INTRODUCTION 


xvii 


Paul  Potter  (1625-1654). 

Gerard  Terburg  (1608-1681). 
Jan  Steen  (1626-1679). 

FRENCH 

Charles  le  Brun  (1619-1690). 
Eustache  le  Sueuer  (1617-1655). 

ITALIAN 

Carlo  Dolci  (1616-1686). 

Guido  Reni  (1575-1642). 
Domenichino  (1581-1641). 
Guercino  (1591-1666). 
Sassoferrato  (1605-1685). 


I 


THE  IMMACULATE  CONCEPTION 

The  country  of  Spain  has  in  former  times  con- 
tributed much  that  is  beautiful  to  the  art  and  litera- 
ture of  the  world.  Some  of  our  great  men  of  letters, 
like  Washington  Irving,  Longfellow,  and  Lowell, 
have  drawn  inspiration  from  its  storied  past.  The 
most  celebrated  Spanish  painters  lived  in  the  seven- 
teenth century,  and  among  them  was  Murillo,  some 
of  whose  pictures  we  are  to  study  in  this  little  col- 
lection. 

Murillo  passed  the  most  of  his  life  in  his  native 
city  of  Seville,  the  capital  of  the  old  province  of 
Andalusia,^  which  is  at  the  southern  end  of  Spain. 
In  his  time,  the  city  was  called  the  glory  of  the 
Spanish  realms.’’  Great  nobles  and  rich  merchants 
lived  there,  and  from  its  ports  trade  was  carried  on 
with  all  parts  of  the  world.  It  was  adorned  with 
splendid  buildings  and  public  squares,  and  sur- 
rounded by  beautiful  gardens. 

Now  the  public  buildings  of  this  time  were  not 
only  fine  to  look  upon  on  the  outside,  but  they  were 

^ In  modern  Spain  the  territory  once  called  Andalusia  is  divided 
into  the  provinces  of  Almeria,  Jaen,  Malaga,  Cadiz,  Huelva,  Seville, 
Cordova,  and  Granada. 


2 


MURILLO 


made  glorious  within  by  the  paintings  on  the  walls. 
This  was  especially  the  case  with  churches,  monas- 
teries, and  hospitals,  and  there  was  a great  demand 
for  pictures  of  religious  subjects  suitable  to  adorn 
such  buildings.  Most  of  Murillo’s  works  were  pic- 
tures of  this  kind.  They  illustrated  Bible  stories, 
the  life  of  Christ,  the  life  of  the  Virgin,  and  the 
traditions  of  the  saints.  The  painter  was  himself  a 
very  pious  man,  and  his  heart  was  in  his  work.  So 
it  came  to  pass  that  his  pictures  were  not  only  great 
works  of  art,  but  they  were  also  full  of  religious 
feeling. 

His  favorite  subject  was  the  Virgin  Mary  repre- 
sented as  floatinof  in  mid-air  as  in  a vision.  The 
subject  is  called  the  Immaculate  Conception,  and 
the  purpose  is  to  show  the  stainless  purity  of  Mary’s 
character. 

Our  illustration  is  from  one  of  his  most  celebrated 
pictures  of  this  kind.  The  full-length  figure  of  the 
Virgin  is  seen  in  the  sky  against  a golden  light,  with 
a crescent  moon  beneath  her  feet,  and  throngs  of 
rejoicing  angels  about  her.  The  suggestion  for  the 
picture  is  from  a verse  in  the  book  of  Revelation 
which  describes  a woman  clothed  with  the  sun, 
and  the  moon  under  her  feet.” 

She  is  robed  in  white  with  a blue  mantle  thrown 
about  her.  The  white  is  for  her  maidenly  innocence, 
and  the  blue  — the  color  of  the  sky  — for  truth  and 
eternity.  Her  hair  is  unbound  and  falls  over  her 
neck  and  shoulders  like  a beautiful  veil.  It  was  an 
old  custom  for  brides  to  be  married  with  their  hair 


From  a carbon  print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co.  Jolui  Andrew  & Son,  So. 

THE  IMMACULATE  CONCEPTION 
The  Louvre^  Paris 


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THE  IMMACULATE  CONCEPTION 


5 


down  as  a sacred  token  of  their  maidenhood.  So 
Mary  is  arrayed  like  a bride  ready  to  receive  her 
heavenly  bridegroom. 

Her  figure  seems  buoyed  in  the  air  by  heavenly 
zephyrs.  Her  face  is  raised  to  heaven  in  rapture. 
Her  hands  are  pressed  lightly  to  her  bosom  and  hold 
in  place  her  mantle  and  scarf.  The  poise  of  the 
head  suggests  that  of  a flower  lifting  itself  to  the 
sun,  and  the  face  itself  has  a delicate  flower-like 
beauty.  It  is  like  nothing  the  painter  had  ever 
seen  among  the  Andalusian  maidens,  and  like  none 
of  the  great  pictures  by  the  old  masters.  It  was 
his  own  ideal  of  the  gentle,  innocent  sweetness  of 
the  Virgin. 

It  is  a girlish  face,  as  innocent  and  trusting  as  a 
child’s,  the  index  of  a soul  unspotted  by  evil.  One 
may  well  believe  that  no  shadow  of  sin  ever  fell 
across  that  gentle  life,  and  the  lines  of  Wordsworth 
come  to  mind  as  perfectly  describing  the  picture : — 

“ Mother  whose  virgin  bosom  was  uncrost 
With  the  least  shade  of  thought  to  sin  allied ! 

Woman  ! above  all  women  glorified  ; 

Our  tainted  nature’s  solitary  boast ; 

Purer  than  foam  on  central  ocean  tost  ; 

Brighter  than  eastern  skies  at  daybreak  strewn 
With  fancied  roses,  than  the  unblemish’d  moon 
Before  her  wane  begins  on  heaven’s  blue  coast, 

Thy  Image  falls  to  earth.” 

No  small  part  of  the  beauty  of  the  picture  is  due  to 
the  host  of  baby  angels  surrounding  the  Virgin  like 
a great  garland.  They  are  winsome  little  creatures 
all,  and  here  and  there  in  the  throng  one  picks  out 
some  face  of  special  charm.  There  is  a beautiful 


6 


MUKILLO 


figure  seated  on  a cloud  just  below  the  Virgin.  His 
right  arm  is  lifted  exultingly  in  the  air,  and  a heav- 
enly smile  is  on  the  little  face.  He  seems  to  call 
the  attention  of  his  companions  to  the  vision  above. 
The  angel  at  his  right  turns  his  face,  too,  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  lifted  arm,  and  clasps  his  own  chubhy 
little  hands  together  in  adoration.  Others  seem 
more  engrossed  in  their  frolic,  as  they  play  in  and 
out  the  folds  of  the  Virgin’s  robe. 

The  group  in  the  lower  part  of  the  picture  is 
massed  in  the  form  of  a pyramid  to  give  stability  to 
the  composition.  The  others  are  grouped  in  twos 
and  threes,  and  describe  an  outline  following  the 
contour  of  the  Virgin’s  figure. 

The  Immaculate  Conception  was  one  of  three 
large  paintings  which  Murillo  made  for  the  Hospital 
of  the  Venerables  in  Seville.  Like  most  of  the 
painter’s  works  it  was  long  ago  taken  from  its  origi- 
nal home,  and  it  now  hangs  in  the  great  gallery  of 
the  Louvre  in  Paris. 


II 


THE  angels’  kitchen 

Some  two  hundred  years  before  the  time  of  Mu- 
rillo^ there  lived  in  a Franciscan  convent  at  Alcala 
a man  named  Diego,  who  was  an  Andalusian  by 
birth.  He  was  not  regularly  ordained  to  the  priest- 
hood, but  was  what  is  termed  a lay  brother,  that  is, 
he  followed  the  life  of  a friar  without  any  priestly 
duties.  His  work  was  with  the  household  affairs  of 
the  convent : he  did  the  cooking  for  the  brother- 
hood, and  was  also  the  convent  porter.  From  all 
accounts  Diego  was  a common  sort  of  fellow,  very 
ignorant  and  uncouth.  But  he  was  a pious  soul, 
living  a life  of  holiness,  and  faithfully  performing 
his  daily  tasks.  The  Franciscans  were  one  of  the 
mendicant  orders,  that  is,  they  had  no  earthly  pos- 
sessions of  their  own  and  begged  their  food  and 
clothing.  They  were  taught  strict  self-denial. 

The  life  of  Diego  must  have  been  a simple, 
monotonous  round  from  day  to  day,  preparing  the 
frugal  meals  for  the  brethren  and  performing  the 
domestic  duties  of  the  household.  It  would  not 
appear  that  a convent  kitchen  was  a place  where 
anything  interesting  could  happen,  and  certainly  not 
a place  where  a man  could  become  famous. 


8 


MURILLO 


But  the  story  runs  that  one  clay  a marvel  befell 
Dieg-o  in  his  kitchen,  and  from  that  day  his  name 
became  famous  in  the  religious  annals  of  Spain. 
While  busy  with  his  cooking  he  was  suddenly  raised 
into  the  air  in  a heavenly  ecstasy,  while  angels  filled 
the  room  and  went  on  with  his  work.  This  is  the 
story  illustrated  in  our  picture,  and  it  is  one  of  a 
series  of  scenes  from  the  life  of  San  Dieo-o. 

O 

Our  painter  had  undertaken  to  decorate  the  walls 
of  a Franciscan  convent  in  Seville  with  eleven  pic- 
tures. It  was  a large  order,  and  the  brotherhood 
set  a very  small  price  on  the  work.  No  painter 
of  established  reputation  would  consider  their  offer. 
For  Murillo,  however,  it  was  exactly  the  chance  he 
wanted  to  show  what  he  could  do.  He  was  then 
a young  man,  and  had  just  returned  home  after 
three  years’  study  in  Madrid,  to  make  his  way  in  the 
world. 

The  life  of  the  Andalusian  San  Diecfo  was  an 
especially  appropriate  subject  for  the  Sevillian  con- 
vent. As  the  friars  came  and  went  about  their  daily 
tasks,  they  would  be  cheered  and  inspired  by  these 
scenes  from  the  life  of  one  of  their  own  race  and 
order.  It  was  encouraainof  to  see  that  a humbler 
man  than  any  of  their  number  was  favored  with  such 
experiences  of  heavenly  fellowship.  We  can  readily 
understand  how  much  this  particular  picture  meant 
to  them. 

The  two  tall  anaels  conversing  toa:ether  are  in  the 
centre  of  a long,  narrow  picture,  only  a portion  of 
which  is  reproduced  here.  Beneath  them  is  painted 


From  a carbon  print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co.  John  Andrew  & Son,  Sc.' 


THE  ANGELS’  KITCHEN 


11 


a narrow  tablet  inscribed  with  a descriptive  title  of 
the  picture.  In  the  part  cut  off  at  the  left  side  are 
three  men  just  entering  the  door,  and  pausing  in 
astonishment.  On  the  right  side  is  represented  the 
further  end  of  the  kitchen.  Our  illustration,  how- 
ever, shows  us  the  heart  of  the  composition,  and 
carries  the  whole  story  with  it.  Indeed,  as  some 
one  has  said,  it  is  not  necessary  to  read  the  story 
elsewhere,  it  is  all  so  plainly  seen  in  the  picture. 

San  Diego  is  floating  upward  in  the  air  in  a kneel- 
ing posture,  a mysterious  light  shining  about  him. 
His  face  is  as  commonplace  as  tradition  describes  it, 
but  is  full  of  earnestness.  His  eyes  are  turned 
heavenward,  and  he  sees  nothing  of  what  is  going  on 
about  him.  Meantime  the  angels  are  busy  prepar- 
ing the  dinner,  and  in  the  midst  of  their  work  a 
friar  comes  in  at  the  rear.  We  notice  that  the 
angels  are  of  two  quite  different  orders.  Some  are 
tall,  lithe  beings  with  large  spreading  pinions,  and 
others  are  little  creatures,  chubby  and  frolicsome 
like  human  babies.  The  tall  ones  seem  to  be  plan- 
ning and  directing  the  work,  one  of  them  setting 
forth  to  draw  water,  another  attending  to  the  meat, 
and  a third  busy  with  mortar  and  pestle.  The  baby 
angels  are  on  the  floor  about  the  pan  of  vegetables. 
They  enter  into  the  task  with  the  delight  of  children 
who  are  allowed  to  help  their  elders,  and  the  work 
is  turned  into  play. 

Murillo’s  two  conceptions  of  angels  may  be  traced 
through  all  his  pictures.  He  painted  one  kind  or 
the  other  according  to  the  subject  represented.  The 


12 


MURILLO 


tall  angels  are  the  messengers  dispatched  to  earth 
on  active  errands,  as  when  they  descend  and  as- 
cend the  ladder  of  Jacob’s  dream.  The  baby 
angels  are  the  multitude  of  the  heavenly  host  ” 
who  fill  the  celestial  spaces  with  rejoicing.  They 
throng  about  the  Virgin  of  the  Immaculate  Concep- 
tion, they  accompany  the  Christ-child  as  he  descends 
to  St.  Anthony,  they  hold  the  wreath  of  roses  over 
the  head  of  the  child  Mary,  and  crown  the  martyr 
St.  Roderick.  There  is  scarcely  a picture  of  any 
religious  suliject  by  Murillo  where  their  sweet  little 
faces  do  not  appear. 


BOY  AT  THE  WINDOW 


Nearly  all  the  orders  which  Murillo  received  for 
paintings  were,  as  we  have  seen,  for  religious  pic- 
tures to  decorate  churches  and  monasteries.  There 
was,  however,  another  class  of  pictures  which  he 
painted  apparently  for  his  own  pleasure,  and  as  a 
means  of  improvement  in  his  art.  These  were 
studies  of  street  children  and  beggars.  Such  works 
are  known  as  genre  pictures,  because  they  reproduce 
directly  the  scenes  of  common  life,  just  as  they  are 
found  by  the  artist. 

The  city  of  Seville,  where  Murillo  lived,  was  full 
of  picturesque  scenes  at  every  turn.  In  southern 
Spain  the  common  people  spend  much  of  their  time 
in  the  open  air,  chatting  in  street  and  market-place, 
and  lounging  in  doorways  and  windows.  They  are 
a rather  indolent  race,  good-natured,  full  of  fun,  and 
easily  pleased.  They  are  a handsome  people  too, 
with  rich  olive  skins,  brilliant  dark  eyes,  and  glossy 
black  hair.  The  bright  colors  which  they  love  to 
wear  set  off  their  charms  to  perfection. 

Murillo  was  a keen  observer  of  people  and  things. 
As  he  came  and  went  through  the  streets,  his  quick 
eye  caught  here  a smiling  face,  there  a stalwart 
figure,  yonder  an  effective  sash  or  shawl : the  city 
was  full  of  life  and  color. 


14 


MURILLO 


It  was  no  doubt  during  some  of  his  strolls  about 
the  city  that  he  chanced  to  see  this  jolly  little  boy 
leaning  on  a window  ledge.  There  was  something 

o o 

going  on  in  the  street  which  amused  the  little  fellow 
mightily,  and  a broad  grin  appeared  on  the  round 
face.  Quite  unconsciously  he  made  a charming  pic- 
ture, and  in  a single  glance  the  painter  took  in  the 
scene  and  resolved  to  put  it  on  canvas. 

Nowadays  a boy  leaning  out  of  a window  is  pretty 
sure  to  be  caught  by  the  snap  shot  of  some  camera. 
Something  of  the  same  sort  befell  the  boy  of  our 
story  on  this  day,  long  before  the  invention  of  pho- 
tography. The  painter’s  eye  could  take  a snap  shot 
almost  as  quickly  as  a camera,  and  the  picture  was 
j)hotographed  on  his  memory.  When  he  actually 
began  to  paint  it,  no  doubt  the  boy  himself  was 
called  in,  that  the  artist  might  study  the  face  more 
carefully. 

He  is  a happy-go-lucky  little  fellow  with  nothing 
to  do  all  day  but  to  laugh  and  grow  fat.  There  are 
no  lessons  to  puzzle  his  brain  and  no  schoolmaster’s 
floggings  to  fear.  There  was  no  compulsory  edu- 
cation ” in  these  long-ago  days.  Life  is  one  long 
holiday,  and  if  he  is  sometimes  hungry  he  is  not  the 
boy  to  cry  for  a little  thing  like  that.  Something 
is  sure  to  turn  up  by  and  by.  In  the  mean  time 
there  are  plenty  of  ways  to  amuse  one’s  self.  One 
might  even  stay  all  day  at  the  window  and  find 
somethin^;  to  see. 

Little  donkeys  patter  by  over  the  cobblestones, 
laden  with  huge  panniers  of  straw  or  charcoal.  A 


From  a narlmn  print  hy  liraun,  Clement  & Co. 


John  Anilrew  & Son,  He, 


BOY  AT  THE  WINDOW 
National  Gallery^  London 


BOY  AT  THE  WINDOW 


17 


guitar-player  strolls  along,  thrumming  the  strings  of 
his  instrument  to  accompany  the  love  song  which  he 
sings.  Fruit- venders  pass,  bearing  their  heaped-up 
baskets  and  calling  aloud  their  wares.  Perhaps  a 
nobleman  may  chance  to  come  this  way  and  will  toss 
him  a coin. 

Such  are  some  of  the  figures  which  we  may 
imagine  passing  by  the  face  at  the  window.  It  is  a 
round  little  face,  lighted  by  dancing  black  eyes  which 
are  full  of  innocent  mischief.  The  boy  has  a snub 
nose  and  a large  mouth.  His  parted  lips  show  a 
gleaming  row  of  teeth.  The  Spanish  are  noted  for 
their  fine  white  teeth,  and  a witty  traveller  has  said, 

They  are  quite  capable  of  laughing  on  purpose  to 
show  them.^’  The  child's  black  hair  is  so  glossy  that 
the  light  is  reflected  from  it  as  from  a polished  sur- 
face. His  blouse  is  slipping  down  on  one  side,  and 
we  see  his  plump  neck  and  shoulders.  In  this  warm 
climate  the  poor  people  go  about  half  clad. 

We  like  to  think  that  the  boy  and  the  painter 
grew  to  be  friends.  As  there  are  other  pictures  of 
the  same  child,  we  feel  sure  he  must  have  been  a 
frequent  visitor  at  the  studio.  An  open-hearted, 
confiding  little  fellow  like  this  could  not  fail  to  win 
the  heart  of  the  genial  Murillo,  whom  everybody 
loved.  A useful  little  friend,  too,  the  boy  proved  to 
be ; it  was  good  practice  for  the  painter  to  study 
the  well-shaped  head  and  plump  neck  and  shoulders. 
An  artist  can  teach  himself  a great  deal  by  painting 
the  same  model  many  times  in  different  positions. 

Such  genre  pictures  as  this  were  very  helpful  to 


18 


MURILLO 


Murillo  as  preparatory  studies  for  liis  great  histori- 
cal pictures.  In  some  of  these  he  had  large  com- 
panies of  people  to  paint.  Now  when  an  artist 
paints  a crowd  he  can  make  it  more  natural  and  life- 
like if  he  puts  in  people  he  has  actually  seen.  So 
with  Murillo.  When  he  painted  the  large  companies 
in  his  historical  pictures,  he  tilled  in  with  the  same 
figures  he  had  already  painted  from  life  in  his  (jenre 
studies.  There  is,  for  instance,  a large  painting  of 
the  Israelites  at  the  rock  of  Horeh,^  in  which  you 
can  easily  make  out  a boy  in  the  crowd  much  like 
this  Boy  at  the  Window.  Thus  the  painter  knew 
how  to  adapt  the  material  which  lay  around  him  to 
the  various  purposes  of  his  art. 

This  is  the  large  painting  in  the  Hospital  of  Charity,  Seville, 
usually  called  Moses  Striking  the  Rock.  The  figure  referred  to  is  a 
boy  at  the  extreme  right  end  drinking  from  the  vessel  which  is  held 
to  his  lips. 


IV 


THE  ADORATION  OF  THE  SHEPHERDS 

The  story  of  the  first  Christmas  night  is  one  of 
the  dear  familiar  tales  we  like  to  hear  repeated.  It 
is  the  story  of  the  birth  of  Jesus  in  the  little  Judsean 
town  of  Bethlehem.  It  happened  that  Mary  and 
Joseph  had  come  thither  from  their  home  in  Nazareth 
to  pay  their  taxes.  The  inn  where  they  lodged  was 
so  crowded  that  they  laid  the  new-born  babe  in  a 
manger  used  for  feeding  cattle. 

Now  the  country  round  about  was  a great  sheep 
country.  In  this  very  town  centuries  before  had 
lived  the  shepherd  David,  who  was  called  from 
his  flocks  to  be  anointed  king.  The  surrounding 
hillsides  made  good  grazing-ground,  and  in  this  mild 
climate  flocks  were  kept  out  all  night. 

On  the  night  of  Jesus’  birth  some  shepherds  were 
watching  their  sheep  when  a strange  thing  happened. 
The  story  is  told  by  the  evangelist  St.  Luke  in  these 
words : And  there  were  in  the  same  country  shep- 
herds abiding  in  the  field,  keeping  watch  over  their 
flock  by  night.  And,  lo,  the  angel  of  the  Lord 
came  upon  them,  and  the  glory  of  the  Lord  shone 
round  about  them  : and  they  were  sore  afraid.  And 
the  angel  said  unto  them,  ^ Fear  not ; for  behold,  I 
bring  you  good  tidings  of  great  joy,  which  shall  be 


20 


MURILLO 


to  all  people.  For  unto  you  is  born  this  day  in  the 
city  of  David  a Saviour  which  is  Christ  the  Lord. 
And  this  shall  be  a sign  unto  you ; ye  shall  find 
the  babe  wrapped  in  swaddling  clothes,  lying  in  a 
manger.’ 

And  suddenly  there  was  with  the  angel  a multi- 
tude of  the  heavenly  host  praising  God,  and  saying, 
‘ Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on  earth  peace, 
good  will  toward  men.’  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  the 
angels  were  gone  away  from  them  into  heaven,  the 
shepherds  said  one  to  another,  ^ Let  us  now  go  even 
unto  Bethlehem,  and  see  this  thing  which  is  come 
to  pass,  which  the  Lord  hath  made  known  unto  us.’ 
And  they  came  with  haste,  and  found  Mary,  and 
Joseph,  and  the  babe  lying  in  a manger.” 

Our  picture  illustrates  this  story  of  the  shepherds’ 
midnight  visit  to  the  manofer.  Three  of  them  have 
crowded  into  the  little  room,  in  the  dim  corner  of 
which  are  seen  the  heads  of  an  ox  and  an  ass.  Mary 
draws  back  the  coverlid  to  show  the  babe  to  the  vis- 
itors. She  takes  a young  mother’s  gentle  pride  in 
displaying  her  wonderful  new  treasure.  The  man 
in  the  rear  is  Joseph,  wearing  a heavy  cloak  and  lean- 
ing on  his  staff.  He  contemplates  the  child  thought- 
fully, as  if  wondering  what  his  future  may  bring. 
The  shepherds  are  as  simple-hearted  as  children  in 
the  expression  of  their  admiration  and  delight. 

They  are  big,  powerfully  built  peasants  clad  in 
skin  and  homespun  garments.  One  of  them  kneels 
ill  front,  and  we  see  the  upturned  soles  of  his  bare 
feet,  seamed  and  hardened  by  exposure.  Beside 


The  Prado  Gallery,  Madrid 


THE  ADORATION  OF  THE  SHEPHERDS  23 

him  on  the  floor  lie  the  fowl  which  he  has  brought 
as  a gift  to  the  babe.  The  woman  behind  him  has 
a basket  of  eggs,  and  the  youth  accompanying 
her  leads  a lamb.  These,  too,  are  gifts  such  as 
peasant  farmers  would  naturally  bring.  They  have 
no  money  for  rich  presents,  and  - they  choose  the 
best  that  they  have  of  their  own  raising.  The 
lamb  is  a symbol  of  the  child’s  innocence  as  the 
Lamb  of  God  who  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the 
world.”  The  eggs  are  an  emblem  of  the  Eesurrec- 
tion. 

The  light  of  the  composition  is  concentrated  upon 
the  child,  and  shines  brightly  on  the  mother’s  face. 
It  was  an  old  custom  of  painters  to  make  the  Christ 
child  the  source  of  light  in  a picture,  as  symbolic  of 
his  character  as  the  Light  of  the  World.  In  this 
strong  light  we  can  see  what  a beautiful  babe  he  is, 
with  plump  limbs  and  a well-shaped  head. 

The  mother  bends  a tender  glance  upon  him.  She 
is  a gentle  young  woman  who  adapts  herself  quite 
simply  to  her  strange  surroundings,  as  if  there  were 
nothing  unusual  about  them.  There  is  indeed  no 
sign  of  the  supernatural  in  the  picture  except  in  the 
light  shining  from  the  child.  The  whole  sentiment 
is  that  of  a simple,  homely,  every-day  religion. 

To  a pious  nature  like  Murillo’s  this  story  of  long 
ago  was  as  real  as  if  it  had  taken  place  in  his  own 
country  and  among  his  own  people.  So  instead  of 
casting  about  in  his  mind  to  imagine  some  strange 
scene,  he  represented  the  story  precisely  as  if  he  had 
himself  seen  it  in  a country  town  of  Andalusia. 


24 


MURILLO 


There  is  an  old  Latin  Christmas  hymn  ^ which  dates 
from  the  mediaeval  period,  which  expresses  so  well  the 
reli^ous  feeling  of  the  picture  that  it  is  pleasant 
to  read  it  in  this  connection.  Here  are  a few  verses 
in  which  some  of  the  phrases  would  almost  seem  in- 
tended to  describe  this  very  picture  : — 

“ O what  glad,  what  rapturous  feeling 
Filled  that  blessed  Mother  kneeling 
By  her  Sole-Begotten  One  1 
IIow  her  heart  with  laughter  bounding 
She  beheld  the  work  astounding 
Saw  his  birth,  the  glorious  Son. 

“ Jesus  lying  in  the  manger. 

Heavenly  armies  sang  the  Stranger, 

In  the  great  joy  bearing  part; 

Stood  the  Old  Man  with  the  INlaiden, 

No  words  speaking,  only  laden 
With  this  wonder  in  their  heart. 

“Mother,  fount  of  love  still  flowing. 

Let  me,  with  thy  rapture  glowing. 

Learn  to  sympathize  with  thee. 

Let  me  raise  my  heart’s  devotion, 

Up  to  Christ  with  pure  emotion, 

That  accepted  I may  be. 

“All  that  love  his  stable  truly, 

And  the  shepherds  watching  duly. 

Tarry  there  the  livelong  night; 

Pray  that  by  thy  Son’s  dear  merit 

Ilis  elected  may  inherit 

Their  own  country’s  endless  light.” 


1 “ Stabat  Mater  Speciosa,”  translated  by  Dr.  Neale. 


V 


THE  MADONNA  AND  CHILD 

The  child  Jesus  was  brought  up  in  the  little 
Galilean  town  of  Nazareth,  with  Mary  his  mother, 
and  her  husband  Joseph.  Strange  stories  were  told 
of  the  family,  and  it  was  said  that  they  were  in  com- 
munication with  the  angels.  Before  the  birth  of 
Jesus  Mary  had  been  visited  by  an  angel  to  tell  her 
of  the  great  mission  he  was  coming  to  fulfil.  On  the 
night  when  he  was  born,  angels  had  announced  his 
birth  to  some  shepherds  of  the  neighborhood.  When 
King  Herod  ordered  a massacre  of  babes,  an  angel 
directed  Joseph  to  flee  with  his  family  to  Egypt. 
And  again,  on  the  death  of  Herod,  an  angel  had 
bidden  them  return  to  their  own  country.  When 
at  last  they  settled  in  Nazareth,  Mary  herself  said 
little  of  all  these  things,  but  kept  them  in  her  heart. 

Everybody  knows  the  later  history  of  the  boy, 
how  he  went  about  preaching  and  doing  good,  and 
how  he  set  the  standard  of  ideal  manhood.  After 
all  these  centuries  the  story  of  his  life  is  repeated 
every  day  throughout  the  whole  world. 

It  is  natural  to  try  to  imagine  how  this  wonderful 
child  looked.  Artists  have  never  wearied  of  painting 
pictures  representing  the  mother  holding  him  in  her 
arms.  Such  pictures  are  called  the  Madonna  and 


26 


MURILLO 


Child,  the  word  Madonna  meaning  My  lady/’  as 
the  Italians  address  the  Virgin.  The  Italian  word 
has  become  attached  to  the  subject  from  the  fact 
that  such  pictures  were  first  popular  in  Italy.  It 
was  a favorite  subject  with  Murillo,  and  he  painted 
it  many  times. 

In  the  picture  reproduced  in  our  illustration  the 
Mother  sits  out  of  doors  beside  a bit  of  ruined  wall, 
with  the  boy  on  her  capacious  lap,  nestling  against 
her  shoulder.  They  have  the  dark  eyes  and  black 
hair  of  the  Spanish  type.  One  could  easily  imagine 
that  the  painter,  walking  some  day  in  the  country, 
had  seen  just  such  a mother  and  child  among  the 
peasants  of  Andalusia.  ^^Here,”  he  might  have  said 
to  himself,  ^^is  a sweet  young  mother  worthy  to 
represent  the  mother  of  Jesus,  and  here  is  a babe 
whose  robust  little  figure  would  serve  well  as  a 
model  for  the  Holy  Child.” 

Evidently  it  did  not  occur  to  him  that  the  mother 
and  child  must  be  made  beautiful,  except  as  fine 
healthy  bodies  make  for  beauty.  Beauty  of  face  is 
not  an  essential  mark  of  beauty  of  soul.  Earnest- 
ness of  character  was  rather  what  he  sought  to  ex- 
press in  the  two  faces. 

They  are  indeed  rather  serious  faces  which  look 
out  of  the  canvas,  and  the  same  mood  is  upon  them 
both.  The  eyes  do  not  meet  ours,  but  seem  to  be 
gazing  into  space,  as  if  in  a waking  dream.  It  is  as 
if  they  awaited  the  approach  of  those  angel  visit- 
ants who  had  so  often  taken  them  under  their  pro- 
tection. 


John  Andrew  & Son,  So. 


THE  MADONNA  AND  CHILD 
T/ie  Corsiiii  Oallery,  Rome 


Prom  a oarhou  print  \iy  IJraun,  Clement  & Co. 


V' 


MADONNA  AND  CHILD 


29 


But  while  their  expression  is  dreamy,  they  have 
the  open  countenances  betokening  a frank  nature. 
The  little  boy  is  not  at  all  precocious-looking,  and 
we  might  not  predict  any  great  things  of  his  future. 
But  from  such  earnest,  simple-hearted  children  as 
this  grow  the  sturdy,  honest  men  who  are  the  hope 
of  the  world.  The  mother  does  not  appear  very 
intellectual,  but  motherhood  lends  a touch  of  dignity 
to  her  bearing.  Her  mature  matronly  face  con- 
trasts with  the  girlish  beauty  of  the  Virgin  of  the 
Immaculate  Conception. 

Perhaps  what  we  like  best  about  the  picture  is 
that  it  is  so  natural  and  homely.  There  is  nothing 
stiff  or  affected  in  the  pose  of  the  figures.  Murillo 
did  not  even  surround  the  heads  with  the  halo,  or 
circle  of  light,  in  the  old  Italian  manner.  He  let 
the  faces  tell  their  own  story.  We  like  to  think 
that  were  the  Christ  child  born  again  in  the  midst 
of  us  to-day,  we  might  find  him  sitting  with  his 
mother  by  the  wayside,  — simple  earnest  country 
folk  like  these. 

We  do  not  always  appreciate  the  greatness  of  art 
when  it  is  so  simple  as  it  is  here,  and  we  must  study 
the  picture  carefully  to  learn  its  good  points.  We 
notice  that  the  main  lines  are  few  in  number,  and 
drawn  in  long  unbroken  sweeps.  The  line  of  the 
mother’s  right  arm  flows  in  a long  fine  curve  from 
neck  to  finger  tip.  Her  drapery  falls  in  simple 
folds.  We  can  see  how  much  stronger  such  a com- 
position is  than  one  broken  into  many  insignificant 
lines. 


30 


MURILLO 


The  two  figures  fall  within  an  imaginary  pyramid 
outlining  the  group.  This  was  a frecpient  style  of 
composition  witli  Murillo,  as  we  shall  see  in  other 
pictures  of  our  collection. 

The  light  of  the  picture  is  massed  in  the  upper 
])art,  l)ringing  into  clear  relief  the  heads  of  the  two 


VI 


REBEKAH  AND  ELIEZER  AT  THE  WELL 

A CHARMING  story  is  told  in  the  Book  of  Genesis  ^ 
of  the  way  in  which  a bride  was  chosen  for  Isaac. 
Isaac  was  the  son  of  the  patriarch  Abraham,  who 
had  left  his  native  country  and  had  gone  into  a 
strange  land  to  found  a new  nation.  The  father, 
being  now  an  old  man,  desired  to  see  his  son  happily 
married  to  a maiden  of  their  own  country.  He  had 
a faithful  servant  named  Eliezer,  who  was  at  the 
head  of  his  household  affairs.  To  him  he  intrusted 
the  delicate  task  of  going  in  search  of  a wife.  The 
servant  naturally  felt  doubtful  about  the  success  of 
his  errand,  but  Abraham  reassured  him.  The  Lord 
God  of  Heaven  shall  send  his  angel  before  thee,” 
said  the  godly  old  man. 

So  Eliezer  took  ten  camels  and  departed,  and  when 
he  drew  near  the  city  of  Nahor  he  made  his  plans. 
Taking  his  stand  by  a well,  he  knew  that  in  the 
course  of  the  day  the  maidens  of  the  city  would 
come  thither  for  water.  He  prayed  God  to  help 
him  make  his  choice  in  this  way  : Let  it  come  to 
pass,”  he  asked,  that  the  damsel  to  whom  I shall 
say,  ^ Let  down  thy  pitcher,  I pray  thee,  that  I may 
drink ; and  she  shall  say,  ^ Drink,  and  I will  give  thy 

* Genesis,  chapter  xxiv. 


32 


IVnjRILLO 


camels  drink  also  : ’ let  the  same  be  she  that  thou 
hast  appointed  for  thy  servant  Isaac.” 

Hardly  had  he  spoken  these  words  when  a dam- 
sel very  fair  to  look  upon  ” appeared  at  the  well. 
Running  to  meet  her,  Ehezer  said,  ^ Let  me,  I pray 
thee,  drink  a little  water  of  thy  pitcher.’  And  she  said, 
^ Drink,  my  lord : ’ and  she  hasted  and  let  down  her 
pitcher  upon  her  hand,  and  gave  him  drink.  And 
when  she  had  done  giving  him  drink,  she  said,  ‘ I 
will  draw  water  for  thy  camels  also,  until  they  have 
done  drinking.’  And  she  hasted,  and  emptied  her 
pitcher  into  the  trough,  and  ran  again  unto  the  well 
to  draw  water,  and  drew  for  all  his  camels.”  Thus 
far  all  was  well,  and  now  Eliezer  drew  forth  a gift 
of  earrings  and  bracelets  and  inquired  the  maiden’s 
name.  He  was  delighted  to  learn  that  she  was 
Rehekah,  the  daughter  of  Nahor  and  Bethuel,  who 
were  kinsfolk  of  Abraham. 

The  family  received  Eliezer  with  hospitality,  but 
he  said,  I will  not  eat  until  I have  told  mine 
errand.”  So  he  related  how  Abraham  had  sent 
him  forth  to  seek  a wife  for  Isaac  among  their  kins- 
folk ; how  he  had  been  troubled  in  his  mind  how  to 
make  the  choice ; how  he  had  planned  to  choose  the 
first  damsel  who  offered  water  both  to  him  and  his 
camels  5 and  how  Rebekah  had  been  this  maiden. 

Then  Laban  [the  brother]  and  Bethuel  [the  mo- 
ther] answered  and  said,  ^ The  thing  proceedeth 
from  the  Lord.  . . . Behold,  Rebekah  is  before  thee, 
take  her  and  go.’  . . . And  they  called  Rebekah, 
and  said  unto  her,  ^ Wilt  thou  go  with  this  man  ? ’ 
And  she  said,  ^ I will  go.’  ” 


REBEKAH  AND  ELIEZER  AT  THE  WELL 
The  Prado  Gallery^  Madrid 


’■  -i, 


REBEKAH  AND  ELIEZER  AT  THE  WELL  35 

Eich  presents  were  now  distributed  by  Eliezer, 
and  there  was  much  eating  and  drinking.  The 
next  morning  the  party  set  forth^  Eebekah  and  her 
maidens  riding  on  the  camels.  On  the  way  Isaac 
came  to  meet  them,  and  when  Eebekah  saw  him  she 
alighted  from  her  camel.  The  two  were  happily 
married  and  lived  together  to  a good  old  age. 

Our  picture  illustrates  that  moment  in  the  story 
when  Eliezer,  having  asked  for  a drink,  receives 
the  answer  he  has  fixed  upon  as  a sign.  He  stoops 
and  drinks  eagerly  from  the  vessel  which  Eebekah 
holds  to  his  mouth.  It  is  the  hour  of  sunset,  and 
the’ young  woman  has  come  to  the  well  with  three 
of  her  maidens,  all  carrying  large  earthen  jars  to 
fill  with  water.  In  primitive  times  water  was 
brought  a long  distance  from  the  house,  and  such 
work  often  fell  to  the  women.  This  was  the  case, 
no  doubt,  in  the  country  about  Seville,  where  Murillo 
must  often  have  seen  groups  quite  like  the  one  in 
the  picture.  The  sunny  climate  of  Spain,  with  its 
blue  skies,  is  indeed  not  widely  different  from  that 
eastern  land  in  which  the  scene  of  the  story  is  laid. 
The  Spanish  maidens  have  the  dark  eyes,  black  hair, 
and  brilliant  color  of  Oriental  beauties.  So  this 
picture,  which  is  really  a wayside  scene  in  Andalu- 
sia,^ is  a fitting  illustration  of  the  old  story  of  Pal- 
estine. It  expresses  perfectly  the  spirit  of  the  buoy- 
ant happy  out-of-door  life  in  warm  climates,  where 
it  is  good  merely  to  be  alive. 

^ Compare  the  face  of  Rebekah  with  that  of  the  Madonna  of  the 
Corsini  Gallery  (page  26),  evidently  from  the  same  model. 


3G 


MURILLO 


Rebekah’s  maidens  are  all  pretty,  but  their  mis- 
tress is  plainly  their  superior.  There  is  an  air  of 
distinction  in  her  bearing  which  the  others  lack. 
They  do  not  conceal  their  curiosity  in  regard  to  this 
stranger.  Visitors  are  rare,  and  they  stare  boldly  into 
his  face,  wondering  who  he  is,  whence  he  came,  and 
whither  he  goes.  Not  so  Rebekah.  She  is  too  well 
bred  to  betray  her  curiosity,  and  turns  her  face 
aside  modestly  as  Eliezer  bends  his  head  to  drink. 
She  has  the  gentle  face  of  a submissive  nature,  and 
a trusting  childlike  expression  as  of  one  who  would 
readily  put  confidence  in  a stranger.  Her  strong 
robust  figure  shows  her  quite  equal  to  the  heavy 
work  of  water-carrying.  In  the  distance  are  the 
camels  waitinof  their  turn  for  water. 

As  we  study  the  picture,  we  see  that  the  artist 
took  pains  to  give  Rebekah  the  place  of  honor,  in 
the  centre  of  the  composition.  Of  the  other  maid- 
ens two  are  seen  only  in  half-length,  and  the  third 
in  a rear  view.  Rebekah  stands  beside  the  well,  her 
finely  proportioned  figure  in  full  view,  and  her  well- 
poised  head  turned  to  show  her  entire  face.  Eliezer 
is  of  secondary  importance.  Though  his  sturdy 
frame  is  displayed  to  good  advantage,  his  face  is 
turned  away.  Because  of  his  stooping  posture  he 
is  overtopped  by  Rebekah,  who  stands  apart  in  the 
centre,  the  tallest  and  finest  figure  of  the  picture. 


THE  DICE  PLAYERS 


Three  children  and  a dog  make  up  a party  of 
boon  companions  gathered  near  the  corner  of  a 
ruined  wall.  They  are  little  hoodlums  of  the 
poorest  class,  half  clad  in  ragged  garments.  They 
pick  up  their  scanty  living  as  best  they  may,  by 
begging  in  the  streets  of  the  great  city. 

All  the  large  cities  of  southern  Europe  swarm 
with  beggar  children.  In  Kome,  Naples,  and  Se- 
ville the  modern  traveller  is  beset  with  them,  and  it 
was  much  the  same  way  in  Murillo’s  time.  One’s 
needs  are  very  few  in  these  southern  countries.  The 
climate  is  so  mild  that  the  poor  take  no  thought 
about  clothing  and  shelter,  and  the  soil  yields  so 
abundantly  that  food  costs  little.  A crust  of  bread 
and  a bit  of  fruit  are  always  to  be  had  for  the  ask- 
ing. These  conditions  and  the  enervating  climate 
tend  to  make  the  people  indolent.  They  are,  how- 
ever, so  good-natured  and  merry,  that  for  all  their 
idleness  we  cannot  help  liking  them.  Some  of  the 
child  beggars  are  so  bewitching  in  their  manners 
that  it  is  hard  to  refuse  them  a coin. 

Such  are  the  children  of  our  picture.  What 
passer-by  could  resist  the  appeal  of  these  little  faces 
when  lifted  with  a confiding  smile  ? It  appears  that 


38 


MURILLO 


they  have  indeed  reaped  a harvest  of  coins,  and  have 
straightway  repaired  to  this  retired  spot  to  stake 
them  in  a game  of  dice.  A large  flat  stone  serves 
admirably  for  a table. 

Two  are  engaged  in  the  game,  while  the  third 
stands  near  by,  idly  eating  a crust  of  bread.  His 
little  dog  watches  every  mouthful  eagerly,  and  ex- 
presses his  mind  as  plainly  as  if  he  could  speak,  but 
his  young  master  seems  to  have  completely  forgotten 
him. 

The  dice  players  bend  over  their  game  in  an  ani- 
mated discussion,  but  with  perfect  good  nature. 
Each  keeps  the  count  on  the  fingers  of  the  right 
hand.  From  his  pleased  expression,  the  boy  in  the 
rear  seems  to  be  the  winner  in  this  throw. 

They  are  not  pretty  children,  but  their  lithe  young 
limbs  are  well  modelled  in  the  curves  which  artists 
love.  The  child  on  this  side  wears  a branch  of  vine 
leaves  in  his  hair,  drooping  at  one  side  from  a sort 
of  fillet  bound  about  the  head.  One  is  reminded  of 
the  young  Bacchus,  the  Greek  god  of  wine,  whose 
figure  is  often  seen  in  classic  sculpture  crowned  with 
vine  leaves.  The  Spanish  have  an  inherent  sense  of 
the  picturesque,  and  dearly  love  all  kinds  of  personal 
adornment.  We  see  this  trait  in  the  costly  jewels 
worn  by  rich  sehoritas  and  the  rose  which  the 
peasant  girl  wears  in  her  hair.  Even  a child  like 
this  shows  the  artist  in  him  with  a bit  of  decora- 
tion. 

The  boy  standing  at  one  side  cares  nothing  for 
the  game,  and  appears  entirely  oblivious  of  his  sur- 


Fr.  Hanistaenpl,  photo.  Jolm  Andrew  & Son,  Sc. 


THE  DICE  PLAYERS 
Munich  Gallery 


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THE  DICE  PLAYERS 


41 


roundings.  He  is  lost  in  a day-dream,  and  gazes 
before  him  into  space.  It  is  a pathetic  little  face, 
full  of  childish  yearning.  The  child  seems  of  a 
more  poetic  and  sensitive  temperament  than  his  com- 
panions. One  wonders  why  he  is  so  thoughtful,  and 
if  he  really  is  unhappy.  Certainly  he  is  not  hungry, 
for  he  clasps  in  his  left  arm  a big  loaf  of  bread,  and 
he  bites  very  deliberately  into  the  slice  he  is  eating. 
Perhaps  he  himself  could  hardly  tell  just  why  he 
feels  in  this  discontented  mood. 

This  is  a child  whom  we  should  single  out  in  a 
crowd  of  beggar  children  when  the  other  two  would 
pass  unnoticed.  He  is,  in  fact,  the  principal  figure 
of  the  picture.  His  large  eyes  are  very  expressive ; 
his  head  is  well  shaped  and  well  set  on  his  shoulders ; 
his  curls  fall  about  his  face  in  charming  ringlets. 
With  another  and  happier  expression  he  might  be 
really  beautiful.  A painter  like  Murillo  would  be 
quick  to  see  the  artistic  possibilities  of  such  a figure. 

The  whole  picture  is  a perfect  transcript  of  the 
life  of  the  streets  : it  has  its  merry,  happy-go-lucky 
side,  but  the  pathetic  element  is  always  present. 
Murillo,  as  a true  interpreter  of  human  nature,  knew 
how  closely  akin  are  humor  and  pathos.  This  scene 
is  indeed  so  thoroughly  human  and  typical  that  one 
might  come  upon  its  counterpart  any  day  in  some  of 
our  great  cities,  as,  for  instance,  in  the  Italian  quar- 
ters of  Boston  or  New  York.  The  picture  shows, 
too,  how  well  Murillo  knew  the  ways  of  children. 
Few  painters  have  equalled  him  in  this  respect. 
Children  of  all  sorts  and  conditions  appealed  strongly 


42 


MURILLO 


to  his  sympathies ; he  seemed  never  to  tire  of  paint- 
irm  them. 

Like  the  Boy  at  the  Window,  the  picture  of  the 
Dice  Players  is  a genre  painting,  intended,  as  it  were, 
for  practice.  How  useful  a study  it  afterwards 
proved  we  shall  presently  see  in  another  picture. 


VIII 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  VIRGIN 

Many  pretty  stories  are  told  of  the  infancy  and 
girlhood  of  the  Virgin  Mary.  It  is  believed  that  she 
was  more  precocious  than  other  children,  and  more 
gentle  and  teachable  in  her  nature.  Some  of  the 
painters  have  delighted  to  represent  her  as  a child 
at  her  mother’s  knee,  as  in  this  picture  by  Murillo. 

Mary  was  the  daughter  of  Joachim  and  Anna, 
rich  people  of  Nazareth.  They  were  a devout  fam- 
ily, and  divided  their  substance  into  three  parts,  one 
for  the  poor,  one  for  the  service  of  the  temple,  and 
the  third  for  their  household.  The  one  gift  denied 
them,  and  which  they  greatly  longed  for,  was  a child. 
At  length,  in  their  old  age,  Mary  was  born  to  them, 
and  they  rejoiced  in  their  daughter. 

From  the  first  the  child  was  dedicated  to  the  ser- 
vice of  God,  and  was  brought  up  with  peculiar  care. 
The  parents  expected  great  things  of  her,  and  the 
mother  watched  her  grow  from  day  to  day.  We 
know  how  in  royal  families  a young  princess  is  edu- 
cated from  her  earliest  childhood  to  meet  her  future 
responsibilities.  She  learns  foreign  languages,  that 
she  may  converse  with  people  of  all  nations.  She  is 
taught  the  social  graces,  that  she  may  be  at  ease 
among  her  subjects.  She  is  trained  to  self-control. 


44 


MURILLO 


that  she  may  be  fitted  to  control  others.  She  is 
exhorted  to  love  and  obey  God,  that  she  may  be  a 
worthy  princess.  Now,  Mary  was  brought  up  much 
after  this  manner.  Like  a princess,  she  was  destined 
to  fill  a place  of  great  responsibility  in  life.  We 
like  to  know  how  faithfully  her  mother  prepared  her 
for  her  life-work. 

In  our  picture  we  see  the  two  at  one  of  the  daily 
lessons.  A basket  of  sewing-work  is  on  the  floor  at 
one  side,  and  they  are  reading  together  from  some 
wise  book.  They  seem  to  have  come  to  a saying 
which  is  hard  for  the  little  girl  to  understand,  and 
the  mother  explains  the  meaning.  The  child  her- 
self holds  the  open  book,  but  to  save  the  tender 
hand  from  the  weight  of  the  thick  volume,  the 
mother  grasps  it  firmly  at  the  top.  As  the  reading 
proceeds  the  little  pupil  follows  the  lines  with  the 
fing-er  of  her  risflit  hand.  She  still  holds  the  fino^er 
on  the  spot  where  they  have  stopped,  lest  she  lose 
the  place. 

The  mother  is  an  elderly  woman,  as  she  is  de- 
scribed by  tradition.  Her  strong,  well-cut  face 
shows  the  firmness  of  character  and  dignity  which 
come  from  years  of  experience.  The  little  girl 
takes  her  lessons  seriously.  Though  her  mother 
speaks  with  an  encouraging  smile,  the  little  mouth 
is  set  very  soberly,  and  the  eyes  have  an  almost  wist- 
ful expression.  She  seems  to  find  lessons  very  per- 
plexing, and  perhaps  she  wishes  that  she  might  run 
and  play  as  freely  as  other  children. 

The  modern  English  artist  poet,  Rossetti,  thought 


From  a carbon  print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co. 


John  Andrew  & Son,  So. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  VIRGIN 

The  Prado  Gallery,  Madrid 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  VIRGIN 


47 


a great  deal  about  the  girlhood  of  the  Virgin,  and 
himself  painted  an  imaginary  scene  of  that  subject. 
He  also  wrote  a poem  to  the  Virgin,  in  which  these 
lines  touch  upon  the  mystery  of  her  girlhood : — 

“ Work  and  play 
Things  common  to  the  course  of  day, 

Awed  thee  with  meanings  unfulfilled; 

And  all  through  girlhood,  something  stilled 
Thy  senses  like  the  birth  of  light. 

When  thou  hast  trimmed  thy  lamp  at  night 
Or  washed  thy  garments  in  the  stream ; 

To  whose  white  bed  had  come  the  dream 
That  he  was  thine  and  thou  wast  His 
Who  feeds  among  the  field-lilies.” 

The  lines  help  us  to  interpret  the  child’s  expres- 
sion in  the  picture.  The  little  girl  seems  awed  ” 
with  the  unfulfilled  meanings  ” of  her  lesson. 
Her  face  is  of  one  who  has  had  strange  dreams  of 
the  solemnity  of  life. 

Hovering  in  the  air,  unseen  by  mother  and  daugh- 
ter, are  two  baby  angels  who  hold  a wreath  of  flowers 
over  the  child’s  head. 

Our  curiosity  is  not  a little  aroused  by  the  quaint 
costumes  of  both  figures  in  the  picture.  The  mother 
wears  on  her  head  a thin  mantle  or  veil,  which  falls 
in  folds  over  her  shoulders.  The  child  is  dressed  in 
a long  gown  sweeping  the  floor,  and  made  with  high 
neck  and  long  sleevq^.  The  thick  blond  hair  is 
parted  on  one  side,  falling  to  the  shoulders,  and 
adorned  with  a white  rose.  It  is  evidently  the  dress 
worn  by  Spanish  children  of  the  upper  classes  in 
the  seventeenth  century*  To  confirm  this  belief 
we  have  only  to  turn  to  the  portraits  by  Murillo’s 


48 


MURILLO 


contemporary,  Velasquez,  to  find  children  similarly 
dressed.  In  fact,  the  little  Virgin  is  not  unlike  the 
young  princess  Margaret  whom  Velasquez  painted. 

Probably  l)oth  Mary  and  her  mother  are  actually 
portraits,  and  some  have  suggested  that  the  origi- 
nals may  have  been  the  painter’s  own  daughter  and 
wife.  It  is  said  that  Rossetti’s  mother  and  sister  sat 
to  him  for  his  picture  of  this  subject. 

It  matters  little  who  were  the  models  for  any 
great  picture  so  long  as  the  painter  succeeds  in  ex- 
pressing the  character  appropriate  to  the  persons 
represented.  Certainly  this  fine  old  woman  is  worthy 
to  be  the  mother  of  the  Viro'in.  The  little  o’irl  her- 

o o 

self  has  a face  innocent  and  serious  enough  to  por- 
tray the  childhood  of  one  who  was  called  blessed 
amoim  women.” 

O 

As  in  many  houses  in  Spain,  the  room  in  which 
the  Virgin  is  seen  opens  on  a balcony,  and  the  pic- 
ture is  therefore  lighted  from  out  of  doors. 


IX 


JESUS  AND  JOHN 
{The  Children  of  the  Shell) 

Jesus  had  a cousin  John  about  his  own  age,  the 
son  of  a priest,  Zacharias,  and  his  wife  Elizabeth. 
The  lives  of  the  two  cousins  were  bound  together  in 
a very  sacred  relation.  Before  the  birth  of  either 
the  parents  had  received  angelic  messages  concern- 
ing the  future  of  their  children.  John  was  to  be  a 
preacher  and  to  prepare  the  way  for  Jesus.  When 
he  grew  to  manhood  he  took  up  his  work  boldly  and 
announced  Jesus  as  the  Messiah.  He  was  called 
John  the  Baptist,  because  he  baptized  his  followers 
in  the  Jordan.  At  last  he  was  thrown  into  prison 
and  beheaded  because  he  had  condemned  the  sins  of 
the  king. 

It  is  pleasant  to  think  that  the  two  cousins  may 
have  been  playmates  in  childhood.  Though  John 
was  the  elder,  Jesus  would  always  be  the  leader  by 
natural  right.  Even  in  boyhood  their  distinctive 
characteristics  would  begin  to  show.  John  was  a 
rugged,  vigorous  boy,  frankly  outspoken  in  his  opin- 
ions, but  quick  to  recognize  the  superiority  of  his 
cousin.  Jesus  was  of  a gentler,  more  refined  nature, 
thoughtful  and  loving  to  all. 


50 


MURILLO 


Our  picture  shows  the  two  children  playing  to- 
gether out  of  doors  in  happy  companionship,  with  a 
lamb  for  a playfellow.  Heated  with  their  romp, 
they  seek  water  from  the  brook,  and  Jesus,  using  a 
shell  as  a drinking-cup,  holds  it  to  John’s  lips.  This 
is  the  imaginary  story  we  read  in  the  picture,  hut  it 
evidently  has  a higher  meaning.  It  is  a sort  of  pic- 
ture allegory  symbolizing  the  future  mission  of  the 
children  and  the  relation  between  them. 

The  little  Baptist  is  clad  in  a skin  garment  such 
as  it  is  supposed  he  afterwards  wore  during  his 
sojourn  in  the  wilderness.  As  the  forerunner  of 
Christ,  he  carries  a reed  cross  about  which  is  wound 
a banderole  inscribed  with  the  words  Ecce  Agnus 
Dei,  This  is  the  Latin  form  of  the  oTeetiim  with 

o & 

which  John  met  the  Saviour  at  the  river  Jordan, 
Behold  the  Lamb  of  God.”  The  lamb  is  another 
reminder  of  the  same  words.  The  water  that  Jesus 
gives  his  cousin  symbolizes  the  water  of  life.  He 
offers  it  with  a pretty  little  gesture  of  authority,  and 
his  companion  drinks  eagerly,  as  if  to  quench  a great 
thirst. 

The  Christ  child  is  a beautiful  golden-haired  boy 
with  a winning  smile.  His  happy,  sunny  nature 
shines  on  his  round  little  face.  The  boy  Baptist 
is  of  a contrasted  type,  more  swarthy  and  hardy  in 
appearance,  and  of  a rather  serious  nature.  Just 
above  the  children’s  heads,  through  an  opening  in 
the  clouds,  a group  of  baby  angels  peep  down  upon 
them  as  if  they,  too,  would  join  the  play.  The 
golden  light  surrounding  them  makes  a bright  back- 


JESUS  AND  JOHN  — “THE  CHILDREN  OF  THE  SHELL 
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63 


ground  against  which  the  Christ  child’s  head  is  seen. 
The  old  Italian  artists  used  to  surround  Christ’s 
head  with  a halo,  and  here  a similar  effect  is  pro- 
duced more  simply. 

The  artistic  qualities  of  our  picture  deserve  care- 
ful study,  for  this  is  one  of  the  most  noted  works  of 
Murillo  in  the  great  gallery  at  Madrid.  The  figures, 
we  notice,  are  arranged  in  a pyramidal  composition, 
with  the  apex  at  the  Christ  child’s  head.  On  the 
right  side,  the  oblique  line  runs  along  the  edge  of 
St.  John’s  back,  while  the  balancing  line  on  the  left 
is  formed  by  the  figure  of  the  lamb.  These  enclos- 
ing lines,  however,  are  not  straight,  but  are  drawn 
in  waving  curves.  There  is  nothing  ‘‘  set  ” about 
the  picture.  The  angel  heads  in  the  upper  air  also 
relieve  the  over-prominence  of  the  pyramidal  form. 
The  color  of  the  original  painting  is  very  wonderful. 
It  is  suffused  with  a beautiful  misty  golden  atmo- 
sphere. 

The  picture  of  Jesus  and  John  makes  an  interest- 
ing contrast  to  the  picture  of  the  Dice  Players,  which 
we  have  already  seen.  The  Sevillian  street  beggars 
are  evidently  drawn  from  life.  We  call  the  picture 
realistic,  because  the  figures  are  real  children.  Jesus 
and  J ohn,  on  the  other  hand,  are  child  ideals.  They 
represent  the  painter’s  conception  of  perfect  child- 
ish beauty,  and  so  we  call  the  picture  a work  of 
idealism. 

Nevertheless,  it  was  doubtless  just  some  such 
street  children  as  the  Dice  Players  who  furnished, 
as  it  were,  the  material  for  Jesus  and  John.  The 


54 


MURILLO 


wistful  little  beggar  dreamily  eating  a piece  of  bread 
may  well  have  been  the  model  for  the  Christ  child; 
the  head  is  indeed  strikingly  like.  In  the  dice 
player  who  wears  the  crown  of  vine  leaves  we  see 
the  same  faun-like  face  as  in  the  little  Baptist.  Even 
the  attitudes  of  both  children  are  similar  in  the  two 
pictures.  It  is  as  if  the  painter  found  in  these  types 
from  real  life  some  suggestion  of  the  ideal  beauty 
which  he  Avas  in  search  of.  It  needed  only  the 
magic  of  his  art  to  transform  them  into  the  beauti- 
ful ideals  of  his  imagination. 


X 


THE  HOLY  FAMILY 

The  family  circle  in  which  Jesus  grew  up  in 
Nazareth  is  always  spoken  of  as  the  holy  family.’’ 
Hence  a picture  representing  the  Mother  and  Child, 
accompanied  by  any  other  relative,  is  called  a Holy 
Family.  Our  illustration  shows  such  a group.  The 
two  mothers,  Mary  and  Elizabeth,  are  here  with 
their  children,  the  cousins  Jesus  and  John. 

Though  there  was  a great  difference  in  the  ages 
of  the  two  women,  the  friendship  between  them  had 
begun  in  the  days  before  their  boys  were  born. 
Mary  had  paid  a visit  to  her  cousin  Elizabeth  in  the 
hill  country,  and  they  had  talked  together  of  the 
future  destinies  of  their  children.  Both  must  have 
been  anxious  to  prepare  their  sons  for  the  great 
career  predicted  for  them  by  the  angels. 

Day  by  day  Mary  watched  Jesus  grow  in  wis- 
dom and  stature  and  in  favor  with  God  and  man.” 
The  great  English  poet  Milton  has  described  Jesus 
as  referring  thus  to  his  mother’s  influence  on  his 
childhood : — 

“ These  growing  thoughts  my  mother  soon  perceiving 
By  words  at  times  cast  forth,  inly  rejoiced, 

And  said  to  me  apart,  ‘ High  are  thy  thoughts, 

O Son;  but  nourish  them  and  let  them  soar 
To  what  height  sacred  virtue  and  true  worth 
Can  raise  them,  though  above  example  high.’  ” 


56 


MURILLO 


We  may  well  believe  that  Elizabeth,  on  her  part, 
trained  her  little  John  to  reverence  his  cousin  Jesus. 
A spirit  of  true  humility  seems  to  have  been  im- 
pressed upon  the  child.  In  after  life  he  declared 
himself  unworthy  to  unloose  the  latchet  of  Jesus’ 
shoes. 

In  our  picture  Mary  sits  on  a mound  with  the 
Christ  child  standing  erect  on  her  lap.  His  right 
elbow  rests  lightly  on  his  mother’s  bosom  to  steady 
himself,  and  her  strong,  motherly  arms  hold  him 
firmly.  Elizabeth  kneels  on  the  ground,  pressing 
the  little  skin-clad  Baptist  forward  to  receive  the 
cross  from  Jesus.  We  see  at  once  that  the  picture 
does  not  represent  any  ordinary  scene  in  family  life. 
The  subject  is  devotional  rather  than  domestic.  Like 
our  other  picture  of  Jesus  and  John,  it  is  an  allegory 
to  show  the  sacred  mission  of  the  two  children. 

The  cross  is  an  emblem  of  suffering,  because  Jesus 
afterwards  died  upon  the  cross.  He  taught  that 
whosoever  taketh  not  up  his  cross  is  not  worthy 
of  him  (Matt.  x.  38).  John  therefore  receives  it 
bravely,  willing  to  endure  anything  for  the  sake 
of  Jesus.  In  his  hand  the  boy  Baptist  carries  the 
scroll  which  is  to  be  fastened  to  the  cross,  as  in 
the  other  picture  (page  51).  Again  there  is  a little 
lamb  to  suofo'est  the  p:entle  character  of  Christ.  It 
is  written  of  him  that  when  he  was  persecuted,  as 
a sheep  before  her  shearers  is  dumb,  so  he  opened  not 
his  mouth.” 

In  the  upper  air  a fatherly  figure  seems  to  lean 
out  of  heaven  with  hands  outstretched  in  benedic- 


From  a carbon  print  by  Braun,  Clement  & Co.  John  Andrew  & Son,  Sc. 


THE  HOLY  FAMILY 

The  Louvre^  Paris 


THE  HOLY  FAMILY 


59 


tion.  We  are  thus  reminded  that  our  Heavenly 
Father’s  care  is  always  over  his  children.  A dove 
hovers  over  Jesus’  head,  as  on  the  day  of  his  baptism 
in  the  river  Jordan. 

Although  there  is  so  much  solemn  meaning  in  the 
picture,  it  is  a very  happy  scene.  All  eyes  centre 
upon  the  Christ  child,  who  is  indeed  a lovely  boy. 
The  gentle  young  mother  looks  at  him  fondly ; Eliza- 
beth’s kindly  face  is  lighted  by  an  admiring  smile ; 
and  the  sturdy  little  Baptist  is  dehghted  with  his 
cousin.  Even  the  angels  of  heaven  look  on  with  re- 
joicing, their  baby  forms  floating  in  a golden  light 
in  the  upper  air. 

In  our  previous  pictures  it  has  been  interesting  to 
trace  the  source  of  the  artist’s  material.  In  some  of 
his  works,  like  the  Immaculate  Conception,  he  seemed 
to  draw  his  ideal  from  his  own  imagination.  In 
others,  like  the  Madonna  and  Child,  he  evidently 
painted  the  peasants  of  his  own  country  very  much 
as  they  were.  Again,  in  the  picture  of  Jesus  and 
John,  we  have  seen  how  he  could  take  ordinary 
people  about  him  and  transform  them  into  ideal 
types. 

Now,  in  this  picture  of  the  Holy  Family  we  see 
two  methods  of  work  combined.  The  children  are 
ideal  figures,  suggested,  no  doubt,  by  some  in  real 
life,  but  made  more  beautiful.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  two  mothers  seem  like  portraits  painted  directly 
from  Andalusian  peasants.  Mary  has  a sweet,  gentle 
face,  quite  in  keeping  with  the  character  of  the 
Virgin.  Elizabeth’s  strong,  wrinkled  visage  accords 


GO 


MURILLO 


perfectly  with  our  conception  of  J ohn’s  mother.  The 
two  women  are  as  strongly  contrasted  as  the  chil- 
dren. The  one  carries  on  her  countenance  the  story 
of  a hfe’s  experience,  while  the  other  has  the  fresh 
young  smile  of  one  on  the  threshold  of  life. 

We  may  find  Elizabeth’s  face  in  other  pictures 
by  Murillo,  as  in  the  Adoration  of  the  Shepherds, 
and  among  the  sick  folk  about  St.  Elizabeth  of 
Hungary. 

The  composition  is  in  the  painter’s  favorite  style, 
the  pyramid,  crowned  at  the  apex  with  the  head 
of  the  child  Jesus.  The  figure  of  the  Father  in  the 
upper  air  is  also  outlined  in  the  same  form  as  a sort 
of  enclosing  pyramid. 


XI 


THE  FRUIT  VENDERS 

The  old  province  of  Andalusia  has  been  called 
the  Eden  of  Spain.”  It  is  a fertile  valley  watered 
by  the  Guadalquivir  River,  and  in  this  southern  cli- 
mate the  rich  soil  yields  abundantly.  Even  without 
much  cultivation  the  country  on  either  side  the  river 
has  an  almost  tropical  vegetation.  Wheat  and  maize 
ripen  in  April ; olives  and  oranges,  grapes  and 
lemons  flourish  luxuriantly.  It  is  perhaps  best  de- 
scribed in  the  old  Bible  phrase  as  a land  flowing 
with  milk  and  honey.” 

In  its  heyday  of  prosperity,  when  methods  of  irri- 
gation were  employed,  the  country  might  be  likened 
to  our  own  southern  California.  It  was  covered 
with  rich  vineyards  and  olive  orchards,  the  products 
of  which  were  sent  to  all  parts  of  the  world. 

Those  who  hve  in  the  more  rigorous  climate  of 
the  north  have  little  idea  how  delicious  and  beauti- 
ful is  the  fruit  of  these  southern  countries.  The 
tropical  fruits  sold  in  northern  cities  are  gathered  in 
their  native  land  while  still  green,  and  ripen  during 
their  journey  northward.  They  thus  lose  altogether 
the  peculiar  rich  flavor  which  they  have  when  ripened 
in  the  natural  way.  Of  what  the  grapes  and 
oranges  of  Andalusia  are  we  have  some  faint  notion 


G2 


MURILLO 


from  reading  about  them.  A world-wide  fame 
attaches  to  the  grapes  of  Malaga,  grown  in  this  pro- 
vince. 

In  Murillo’s  time  the  city  of  Seville  was  a gxeat 
fruit  market  for  the  peasants  of  the  country  round 
about.  The  streets  were  full  of  venders  bearino- 

o 

their  precious  wares  in  large  straw  baskets,  and 
calling  them  aloud  as  they  went.  Many  of  these 
were  children  who  could  be  sj)ared  from  the  farm 
better  than  those  who  were  strong  enough  to  work 
in  the  vineyards.  Their  fresh  young  voices  and 
winning  ways  made  them  good  salesmen. 

Such  are  the  girl  and  boy  of  our  picture,  who 
have  met  by  the  wayside  beyond  the  city.  The  girl 
has  had  good  luck  to-day.  Setting  forth  early  in 
the  morning,  she  sold  her  fruit  in  a few  hours ; and 
is  already  on  her  way  back  to  her  village  home,  when 
she  meets  the  boy  just  entering  the  city.  The  two 
hail  each  other  gaily ; the  boy  sets  down  his  basket, 
and  the  girl,  drawing  the  coins  from  the  money  bag 
hanging  at  her  side,  counts  them  from  one  hand 
into  the  other.  This  is  a quiet  spot  in  the  shadow 
of  a ruined  wall,  where  they  are  not  likely  to  be  dis- 
turbed. It  is,  in  fact,  the  very  place  where  the 
street  children  come  to  play  dice,  and  the  flat  stone 
here  makes  a comfortable  seat. 

The  girl  has  a capable  look,  as  if  she  bore  on  her 
young  shoulders  some  of  the  family  cares.  Her  hair 
is  tidily  brushed  and  knotted  at  the  back  in  a coil 
which  lies  in  the  pretty  curve  of  her  neck.  She 
would  not  be  thought  pretty,  but  has  a rather  plain. 


John  Andrew  & Son,  Sc. 


Fr.  Ilanftftaengl,  photo. 


THE  FRUIT  VENDERS 

Mtinkh  Gallery 


■ '*-i 


.*•'1 


£ 


1 


N.  .. 


■1 

' I 


THE  FRUIT  VENDERS 


65 


serious  face.  But  it  is  such  a sensible  face  that  we 
like  it  for  what  it  reveals  of  her  character.  She  is 
evidently  a good  little  business  woman. 

The  boy  takes  a generous  pleasure  in  his  com- 
panion’s good  fortune.  There  is  not  a trace  of 
envy  in  his  good-natured  face,  as  he  bends  over  the 
girl’s  open  palm  and  gazes  at  the  coin  with  innocent 
delight.  There  seems  to  be  something  a little  un- 
usual in  the  day’s  transactions.  Perhaps  some 
wealthy  purchaser,  struck  by  the  girl’s  modest  de- 
meanor, added  an  extra  coin  to  the  price  of  the  fruit. 
It  may,  indeed,  have  been  some  foreign  traveller, 
who  gave  her  a strange  coin  of  his  own  country. 

The  children  seem  to  belong  to  the  better  peasant 
class,  whose  thrift  and  industry  contribute  so  much 
to  the  prosperity  of  the  country.  They  are  in  direct 
contrast  to  the  vagabond  element  we  have  seen  in 
the  picture  of  the  Dice  Players.  As  they  count  the 
coins  they  are  perhaps  thinking  of  all  the  good 
things  they  will  buy.  One  would  like  to  know  how 
Spanish  peasant  children  of  the  seventeenth  century 
would  spend  their  money.  Not  for  books  and  toys 
and  sweets,  certainly,  such  as  tempt  the  children  of 
to-day. 

Except  the  broken  shoes,  which  are  doubtless 
worn  for  comfort  rather  than  by  necessity,  the  girl’s 
clothes  are  very  neat  and  well  made.  Her  sleeves 
are  rolled  back  to  the  elbow,  and  her  skirt  is  care- 
fully turned  up  to  save  it  from  the  dust  of  the  road. 
The  bodice  is  low,  and  shows  the  fine  curve  of  her 
neck  and  shoulder.  She  has  a pretty  ear,  a feature 


cc 


MURILLO 


which  many  do  not  notice,  but  which  painters  are 
sure  to  observe. 

We  see  that  the  two  fio'ures  are  so  arrauo-ed  that 

O O 

the  lines  enclosing  the  group  form  a pyramidal  com- 
position like  those  we  have  noted  in  other  pictures 
of  our  collection.  Murillo’s  groups  are  all  so  simply 
and  naturally  arranged  that  they  seem  to  have  been 
placed  without  thought.  This  is  the  way  in  which 
art  conceals  art,”  as  the  saying  is.  In  reality  the 
painter  was  very  painstaking  in  his  work,  and  care- 
fully observed  the  principles  of  composition. 


XII 


THE  VISION  OF  ST.  ANTHONY 

St.  Anthony  of  Padua  was  a Franciscan  friar 
who  lived  in  the  twelfth  century.  He  was  a Portu- 
guese  by  birth^  and  was  in  Lisbon  when  he  heard  of 
the  martyrdom  of  some  Christian  missionaries  in 
Africa.  This  fired  him  with  ambition  to  emulate 
their  example.  His  career  as  a foreign  missionary 
was^  however,  cut  short  by  illness,  so  he  returned  to 
Europe  and  came  to  Italy. 

On  account  of  his  great  intellectual  gifts  he  was 
advised  by  St.  Francis,  the  founder  of  the  order,  to 
devote  himself  to  scholarly  pursuits.  He  became  a 
university  lecturer,  and  taught  divinity  at  Bologna, 
Toulouse,  Paris,  and  Padua.  In  later  years  he  de- 
voted himself  entirely  to  preaching,  and  went  about 
the  country  among  the  people.  His  eloquence  and 
persuasive  powers  drew  crowds  to  hear  him,  and  he 
generally  preached  in  the  open  air. 

Everywhere  he  pleaded  the  cause  of  the  poor,  and 
wherever  there  was  tyranny  and  oppression  he  boldly 
denounced  it.  He  was  a man  of  tender  heart  and 
gentle  character,  fond  of  flowers  and  all  living  crea- 
tures. His  good  deeds  and  kindly  influence  made 
him  greatly  beloved  by  his  people.  Worn  out  by 
his  arduous  labors,  he  died  at  the  age  of  thirty-six. 


G8 


MURILLO 


and  was  buried  in  the  city  of  Padua.  There  a 
splendid  shrine  holds  his  remains,  in  the  church 
built  in  his  honor. 

Among*  many  stories  of  St.  Anthony’s  life,  there 
is  one  which  is  repeated  oftener  than  any  other.  It 
relates  that  at  one  tune,  when  the  preacher  was  ex- 
pounding* to  his  hearers  the  mystery  of  Christ’s  birth, 
the  infant  Christ  himself  appeared  to  him  in  a vision. 
This  story  had  a peculiar  attraction  for  Murillo.  The 
Franciscans  were  his  chief  patrons,  and  in  his  work 
for  them  he  had  occasion  to  paint  the  Vision  of  St. 
Anthony  in  nine  different  pictures.  Our  illustration 
is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  these. 

The  vision  here  takes  place  in  the  open  air,  as  if 
in  some  spot  where,  according  to  custom,  the  saint 
had  been  preaching.  But  the  people  have  now  dis- 
persed, and  the  vision  is  for  the  preacher  alone.  A 
broad  ray  of  light  streams  from  heaven  to  earth  and 
illumines  the  distant  landscape.  Along  this  golden 
pathway  descends  the  blessed  Christ  child,  accom- 
panied by  a host  of  angels.  The  saint  falls  on  his 
knees  before  the  vision,  and  gathers  the  babe  into 
his  encircling  arms. 

The  little  visitor  has  come  to  bring  some  message 
of  comfort,  and  he  lays  his  hand  caressingly  upon 
St.  Anthony’s  cheek.  The  rosy  face  is  pressed 
against  the  pale,  austere  countenance  of  the  friar. 
The  holy  man  does  not  presume  to  clasp  the  child 
to  his  heart  in  close  embrace.  He  holds  him  rever- 
ently in  his  arms,  the  fine  face  lighted  by  a smile  of 
perfect  happiness.  In  this  moment  of  ecstasy  all 


THE  VISION  OF  ST.  ANTHONY 
Berlin  Gallery 


THE  VISION  OF  ST.  ANTHONY  71 

his  toils  and  privations  are  forgotten ; he  has  his  rich 
reward. 

St.  Anthony  wears  the  dress  of  the  Franciscan 
order,  a dark  brown  tunic  with  long  loose  sleeves. 
A scanty  cape  falls  from  the  shoulders,  and  to  this 
is  attached  a hood  to  be  drawn  over  the  head.  The 
tunic  is  fastened  about  the  waist  with  a knotted  cord, 
which  represents  symbolically  a halter.  The  Fran- 
ciscan idea  of  the  body  is  as  a beast  which  must  be 
subdued,  and  the  brothers  are  taught  severe  self- 
denial.  The  top  of  the  head  is  shaven,  leaving  a 
surrounding  circle  of  hair,  called  a tonsure.  On  the 
feet  is  worn  a sort  of  wooden  sandal. 

The  angels  seem  to  enter  into  the  spirit  of  the 
occasion  with  delight.  One  of  them  is  seated  on 
the  ground  holding  the  preacher’s  book.  A second 
stands  just  behind,  triumphantly  holding  up  a lily 
stalk.  This  attracts  the  attention  of  his  companions 
in  the  upper  air,  one  of  whom  stretches  forth  an 
eager  hand  to  grasp  it.  The  lily  is  an  emblem 
almost  always  used  in  pictures  of  St.  Anthony.  It 
is  peculiarly  appropriate,  because  he  was  a lover  of 
flowers  and  used  to  preach  of  the  lilies  of  the  field. 
Its  whiteness  typifies  the  purity  of  his  saintly  life. 

In  artistic  qualities  there  are  various  points  of  re- 
semblance between  this  picture  and  the  picture  of 
Jesus  and  John.  In  both,  the  figures  are  grouped 
in  a pyramidal  composition  which  nearly  fills  the  ob- 
long canvas.  In  both  the  light  comes  from  a break 
in  the  clouds  to  flood  the  important  part  of  the  pic- 
ture. The  lovely  conception  of  the  baby  angels 


72 


MURILLO 


looking  clown  out  of  heaven  is  re|>eatecl  in  the  two 
pictui*es,  as,  indeed,  in  many  other  works. 

Besides  these  technical  resemblances,  what  is  some- 
times called  the  feeling  ” of  the  pictures  is  similar. 
Both  are  in  the  most  refined  and  dehcate  vein  which 
Murillo’s  art  commanded.  These  two  ideals  of 
the  Christ  child  are  the  highest  which  the  painter 
achieved. 


XIII 


ST.  RODERICK 

A STRANGE  and  troublous  period  in  the  history  of 
Spain  was  during  the  seven  hundred  years  when  the 
country  was  in  the  possession  of  the  Moors.  This 
was  a time  extending  from  the  eighth  to  the  fifteenth 
centuries.  Previous  to  this,  Spain  had  been  occu- 
pied by  the  Visigoths,  who  were  Christians.  Then 
came  the  Arab  host,  sweeping  over  the  land  with 
irresistible  force,  and  all  but  two  provinces  were 
conquered. 

The  Moors  were  followers  of  the  Mohammedan 
religion,  whose  founder  was  the  so-called  prophet 
Mohammed,  and  whose  sacred  book  was  the  Koran. 
These  Mohammedans,  Mussulmans,  or  Moslems,  as 
they  were  variously  called,  were  exceedingly  zealous 
in  their  faith,  and  tried  to  force  it  upon  the  people 
they  had  conquered.  The  difference  in  religions 
was  a cause  of  continual  warfare  between  the  two 
races.  In  the  end,  the  Christians  drove  the  Moslems 
out  of  Spain,  but  only  after  a long  and  fierce  strug- 
gle. The  Moslem  rulers  persecuted  their  subjects 
cruelly,  and  many  good  men  laid  down  their  lives  for 
the  faith.  One  of  the  Christian  martyrs  of  the  ninth 
century  was  St.  Roderick,  who  was  a priest  of  Cor- 
dova. 


74 


MURILLO 


Now,  Cordova  was  the  capital  of  the  Moorish  em- 
pire in  Spain,  and  the  stronghold  of  Mohammedan- 
ism. Here  was  the  palace  of  the  caliph,  who  was 
the  temporal  and  spiritual  ruler  of  the  Moslems. 
Here,  also,  were  some  six  hundred  moscpies,  as  the 
Mohammedan  churches  were  called.  It  fared  hard 
with  Christians  in  such  a place. 

Koderick  Avas  one  of  three  brothers,  two  being 
Christians,  and  one  a Mussulman.  One  night  when 
they  were  all  together,  Roderick’s  Christian  brother 
and  the  Mussulman  began  quarrelling,  and  he  tried 
to  act  as  peacemaker.  His  interference  angered 
them,  and  they  fell  upon  him  so  fiercely  that  they 
nearly  killed  him.  Then  they  fled  from  the  spot, 
leaving  him,  as  they  supposed,  dead. 

The  Mohammedan  brother  noAV  spread  the  news 
that  Roderick  was  dead,  and  that  before  dying  he 
had  embraced  the  Moslem  faith.  This  false  report 
made  it  unsafe  for  Roderick  to  declare  himself  alive. 
He  had  no  mind  to  renounce  the  Christian  religion, 
but  had  he  appeared  in  the  streets  he  would  have 
been  greeted  as  a Mussulman.  He  therefore  hid 
liimself  in  the  mountains  for  a season.  It  happened 
one  day  that  descending  the  mountain  towards  Cor- 
dova, he  met  his  Mohammedan  brother.  The  un- 
natural wretch,  far  from  being  pleased  to  find  his 
supposed  victim  alive,  caused  him  to  be  cast  into 
prison.  The  offence  charged  against  him  Avas  that 
he  had  turned  from  Mohammedanism  to  Christianity, 
while,  as  a matter  of  fact,  he  had  never  been  any- 
thing but  a Christian. 


I'roin  a carbuii  print  by  liraun,  Clement  k Co.  John  Andrew  k Son,  So. 

ST.  RODERICK 

Dresden  Gallery 


ST.  RODERICK 


77 


The  consolation  of  his  imprisonment  was  the  com- 
panionship of  a fellow  martyr,  St.  Salomon.  The 
two  became  fast  friends,  but  when  the  friendship 
between  them  was  observed  they  were  separated. 
Koderick  had  three  trials,  when  he  was  given  a 
chance  to  recant  his  faith.  As  he  did  not  falter  in 
his  loyalty  to  his  Christian  belief,  he  was  condemned 
to  death.  He  was  executed  in  the  year  857,  and  his 
body  was  thrown  into  the  Guadalquivir  River. 

Murillo’s  picture  is  an  imaginary  portrait  of  the 
good  St.  Roderick.  He  is  a tall,  well-built  young 
man  with  the  dark  skin  of  the  Spanish  race.  He 
stands  in  priestly  garments  by  a marble  pillar,  at  the 
angle  of  a balcony.  His  face  is  lifted,  and  he  seems 
to  look  steadfastly  into  heaven,”  like  the  first 
martyr,  Stephen.  One  wonders  if,  like  that  early 
hero,  he  sees  there  the  glory  of  God.” 

The  gentle  face  shows  the  suffering  of  one  who 
has  found  life’s  burdens  hard  to  bear.  A small 
circular  wound  in  his  throat  indicates  the  manner  of 
his  death.  On  his  left  arm  he  bears  the  palm  which 
is  the  emblem  of  martyrdom.  In  the  vision  of 
heaven  described  in  the  book  of  Revelation  a great 
multitude  of  people  are  seen  bearing  palms  in  their 
hands.  One  of  the  Elders  explains  that  these  are 
they  which  came  out  of  great  tribulation.”  ^ This 
is  why  a painter,  representing  a Christian  martyr, 
places  a palm  in  his  hand  to  show  that  he  came  out 
of  great  tribulation.” 

The  richly  embroidered  chasuble,  as  the  vesture 

1 Revelation,  chapter  vii.,  verses  9 and  14. 


78 


MURILLO 


is  called,  wliicli  St.  Roderick  wears,  deserves  special 
attention  because  of  its  history.  Murillo  painted  it 
from  a real  garment  in  the  Seville  cathedral,  where  it 
is  still  shown  to  the  visitor.  Down  the  centre  of  the 
front  runs  a mde  strip  of  embroidery  in  which  three 
ornamental  medalhons  are  wrouo;ht.  The  central 
one  represents  the  apostle  Paul  with  the  sword  which 
is  the  emblematic  attribute  of  that  apostle.  The 
third  shows  St.  Andrew  with  the  large  cross  on 
which  he  was  crucified. 

It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  this  chasuble  was 
ever  worn  by  the  real  St.  Roderick.  It  probably 
belonged  to  a certain  canon  of  Se\dlle,  for  whom 
Murillo  painted  the  picture.  The  canon  would 
naturally  be  pleased  to  have  so  beautiful  a vesture 
immortalized,  and  it  was,  besides,  an  honor  to  the 
memory  of  St.  Roderick  to  array  him  so  magnifi- 
cently. 


XIV 


youth’s  head 

It  sometimes  happens  that  in  a large  company  of 
people,  such  as  might  be  gathered  in  the  streets  of  a 
great  city,  some  face  in  the  crowd  catches  the  eye 
and  holds  it  with  a singular  fascination.  There  are 
dozens  of  commonplace  folk  about,  and  among  them 
all  this  one  seems  like  a denizen  of  another  sphere. 
There  is  a haunting  quality  in  the  face  which  makes 
us  remember  it  a long  time. 

Now,  the  face  of  the  youth  in  our  picture  has  just 
this  peculiar  quality.  Though  quite  unprepossessing 
in  its  features  it  attracts  our  notice  at  once.  Per- 
haps on  some  great  gala  day,  when  the  streets  of 
Seville  were  full  of  people,  Murillo  suddenly  saw  it 
in  the  crowd.  It  so  possessed  his  fancy  that  he 
could  not  rest  till  he  had  put  it  on  canvas,  and  here 
it  stni  remains  to  exercise  its  strange  charm. 

It  is,  indeed,  a face  quite  out  of  the  ordinary. 
Compare  it  a moment  with  the  Boy  at  the  Window 
in  one  of  our  previous  illustrations.^  At  the  first 
glance  at  that  mischievous  little  face,  we  begin  to 
wonder  where  we  have  seen  a boy  just  like  him. 
We  may  not  be  able  to  recall  his  exact  counterpart, 
but  he  is  what  we  call  a common  type.  This  youth, 

1 See  page  15. 


80 


MURILLO 


on  the  other  hand,  is  quite  unlike  any  one  we  have 
ever  seen.  His  persoiudity  is  unique : we  exclaim 
at  once,  What  a singular  face ! 

His  shaggy,  unkempt  locks  and  shy,  fawn-like 
eyes  suggest  some  wild  creature  of  the  woods.  The 
face  calls  to  mind  that  imaginary  being  of  the  old 
Greek  myths  called  a faun,  neither  man  nor  annual, 
and  yet  no  monster,  hut  a being  in  whom  both  races 
meet  on  friendly  ground.”  It  A\ill  be  remembered 
that  in  Hawthorne’s  novel  of  the  Marble  Faun  ” 
there  was  a character  named  Donatello,  who  gave  a 
similar  impression.  One  of  his  peculiarities  was  to 
wear  his  hair  in  long  curls,  concealing  his  ears.  His 
friends  playfully  pretended  to  suspect  that  he  had 
the  pointed  ears  of  a faun.  One  cannot  help  fancy- 
ing that,  could  we  brush  aside  this  youth’s  long 
locks,  we  might  find  faun’s  ears. 

Setting  aside  such  fancies,  we  judge  that  this  is  a 
portrait  of  an  Andalusian  peasant.  It  is  described 
in  some  of  the  art  books  as  a Herdsman  or  Shep- 
herd. Look  again  at  the  picture  of  the  Adoration 
of  the  Shepherds,  and  pick  out  the  figure  of  tlie 
shepherd  leading  a lamb.  You  may  see  a far-away 
resemblance  between  that  head  and  this. 

The  face  is  not  at  all  intellectual,  and  we  fancy 
that  the  youth  is  alike  slow  of  wit  and  slow  of 
tongue.  Apparently  he  belongs  to  that  class  of 
oddly  balanced  minds  which  produces  both  the 
genius  and  the  fool.  The  old-time  phrase  God’s 
fool  ” perhaps  best  describes  those  puzzling  natures 
who  fail  to  grasp  worldly  wisdom,  but  have  so  much 


From  H oarbon  print  by  IJraiin,  Clement  k Co. 


John  Amlrew  & Hon,  He. 


YOUTH’S  HEAD 

Hague  Af useutn 


YOUTH’S  HEAD 


83 


wisdom  of  another  kind.  Such  characters  are  pos- 
sessed of  the  gift  of  eternal  childhood : one  can 
never  tell  how  old  they  are.  Like  children^  too,  they 
are  impulsive  and  affectionate.  They  often  show  a 
touching  fidelity  in  their  attachments.  There  is, 
indeed,  a strong  vein  of  pathos  in  such  lives. 

Our  youth  is,  we  suspect,  one  of  Nature’s  poets. 
His  expression  is  of  one  who  has  lived  alone  with 
his  flocks,  far  from  the  haunts  of  men.  It  is  full  of 
poetic  feehng.  Not,  indeed,  that  he  is  gifted  with 
any  power  of  expression,  but  he  has  the  poet’s 
capacity  for  enjoying  beauty.  His  long  days  under 
the  open  sky  have  filled  him  with  a sense  of  the 
mystery  of  life. 

One  is  reminded  of  that  herdsman  on  the  lonely 
mountain  tops,”  of  whom  Wordsworth  writes  in  the 

Excursion.”  The  poet  tells  us  that  the  youth’s 
whole  being  was  possessed  by  the  beauty  of  nature. 
He  is  described  as  standing  on  some  bold  headland, 
whence 

“ he  beheld  the  sun 

Rise  up  and  bathe  the  world  in  light ! He  looked  ! 

Ocean  and  earth,  the  solid  frame  of  earth 
And  ocean’s  liquid  mass,  beneath  him  lay 
In  gladness  and  deep  joy.  The  clouds  were  touched, 

And  in  their  silent  faces  did  he  read 
Unutterable  love.  Sound  needed  none, 

Nor  any  voice  of  joy;  his  spirit  drank 
The  spectacle:  sensation,  soul,  and  form. 

All  melted  into  him.” 

We  must  understand  that  only  a great  painter 
could  make  a portrait  of  such  a head  a real  work  of 
art  hke  this.  The  features  are  irregular  and  ill 


84 


MURILLO 


formed,  and  in  another  position  the  contom*  of  the 
face  might  be  very  ugly.  To  overcome  these  diffi- 
culties required  much  skill.  The  pose  here  is  par- 
ticularly good.  It  makes  a pleasing  oiithne  for  the 
composition,  and  it  expresses  admirably  the  poetic 
sentiment  of  the  face.  What  is  most  remarkable 
about  the  picture  is  that  the  painter  has  caught  in 
the  expression  that  haunting  quahty  which  is  so 
subtle  and  transient  in  re^d  life. 


XV 


ST.  ELIZABETH  OF  HUNGARY 

(The  Leper) 

There  was  once  a princess  of  Hungary,  named 
Elizabeth,  who  was  celebrated  for  her  beauty  and 
goodness.  She  had  a tall,  slender  figure,  a clear 
brown  complexion,  large  dark  eyes,  and  hair  as  black 
as  night.”  She  was  married  at  the  age  of  fifteen 
to  Prince  Louis,  the  son  of  the  landgrave  of  Thu- 
ringia. They  lived  together  in  the  Castle  of  Wart- 
burg,  on  a steep  rock  outside  the  town  of  Eisenach. 

In  her  early  childhood,  Ehzabeth  was  devoted  to 
deeds  of  charity,  and  used  to  save  food  from  her 
own  meals  to  carry  to  the  poor.  After  her  marriage 
her  habits  of  self-denial  were  redoubled.  Often  at 
royal  feasts  she  contented  herself  with  a crust  of 
bread  and  a cup  of  water.  Her  husband  was  proud 
of  his  wife’s  piety,  and  sympathized  with  all  her 
benevolent  plans.  His  mother  and  sister,  however, 
bitterly  opposed  them,  and  in  the  prince’s  absence 
Elizabeth  had  much  to  suffer. 

At  length  there  was  a famine  in  the  land,  and  it 
was  Elizabeth’s  benevolence  and  wisdom  which  saved 
the  lives  of  the  people.  She  divided  the  corn  and 
bread  into  portions,  so  that  the  supply  lasted  through 
the  summer  till  harvest-time.  The  famine  was  fol- 


86 


MURILLO 


lowed  by  a great  plague,  and  to  meet  this  new  emer- 
gency Elizabeth  founded  hospitals  in  Eisenach.  She 
exhausted  the  treasury  and  sold  all  her  own  robes 
and  jewels  to  pay  for  these.  She  herself,  with  her 
court  ladies,  daily  visited  the  hospitals,  waiting  upon 
the  sick  with  her  own  hands. 

It  is  in  this  labor  of  love  that  our  picture  repre- 
sents the  saintly  princess.  She  stands  beside  a large 
basin  on  a platform  surrounded  by  a group  of 
patients.  A leprous  boy  bends  over  the  basin  while 
her  delicate  hands  bathe  the  sores  on  his  head.  It 
is  this  figure  which  gives  the  Spanish  name  to  the 
picture,  El  Tihoso,  the  Leper.  On  the  opposite  side 
another  leper  waits  his  turn,  removing  the  plaster 
from  his  head  with  a wry  face.  A cripple  is  just 
hobbling  ofP  in  the  rear,  and  a man  sits  in  front  un- 
doing the  bandage  from  his  leg.  An  old  crone  sit- 
ting on  the  edge  of  the  platform  raises  her  face  to 
St.  Elizabeth,  with  a pathetic  expression. 

The  ladies  who  attend  the  princess  do  not  con- 
ceal their  aversion  to  the  loathsome  task,  but  there 
is  no  sio’n  of  shrinkinof  in  their  mistress.  Her  face 
has  a heavenly  cahn  as  the  face  of  an  angel.  She  is 
dressed  in  the  robes  of  a nun  with  a crown  worn 
over  the  veil.  The  sleeves  are  rolled  back  and  show 
the  shapely  hands  and  wrists.  The  face  has  lost  the 
brilliancy  of  its  early  beauty,  and  has  grown  pale 
and  austere  from  long  self-denial.  The  once  splen- 
did hair  is  concealed  under  the  veil.  But  the  fea- 
tures are  cast  in  an  aristocratic  mould,  and  the  poise 
of  the  head  is  that  of  a queen.  The  noble  soul 


ST.  ELIZABETH  OF  HUNGARY  — “THE  LEPER” 

Royal  Academy  of  F me  Arls,  Madrid 


From  a carbon  print  by  Braun,  Clement  k Co. 


John  Andrew  & Son,  Sc. 


ST.  ELIZABETH  OF  HUNGARY 


89 


shining  through  the  face  gives  it  a moral  beauty 
which  is  deeply  impressive.  There  is  a German 
poem  describing  St.  Elizabeth’s  visits  to  the  hospitals, 
some  lines  of  which  seem  to  apply  with  peculiar  ap- 
propriateness to  our  picture  : — 

“ The  poor  cripple  (ofttimes  scorn’d  and  vex’d), 

The  idiots  by  their  painful  lot  perplex’d,  — 

These,  who  found  scoffs  and  shame  their  bitter  part, 

Were  still  the  dearest  to  her  pious  heart ; 

They  hung  upon  her  robe  with  joyous  cries, 

And  gazed  with  love  into  her  loving  eyes, 

The  sick  and  dying  when  she  strove  to  cheer, 

Through  the  long  room  the  cry  rose,  ‘ Here  ! oh,  here  ! * 

With  tender  care  their  wounds  she  drest, 

And  laid  the  suffering  to  rest ; 

With  softest  words  she  calm’d  th’  impatient  mood  ; 

And  if  the  handmaids  who  around  her  stood 
Sought  in  her  ministry  to  share, 

The  sick  would  suffer  only  her  sweet  care, 

And  her  fair  hands  were  kiss’d,  her  name  was  blest.”  ^ 

Our  picture  shows  that  the  painter’s  art  ranged  all 
the  way  from  strict  realism  to  pure  idealism.  The 
figures  of  the  sick  are  so  real  that  one  almost  turns 
away  from  them  in  disgust,  as  from  scenes  of  actual 
suffering.  On  the  other  hand,  the  princess  is  a 
purely  ideal  creation ; only  from  his  own  imagina- 
tion could  the  painter  have  drawn  such  a figure. 
The  strong  moral  effect  of  the  picture  is  produced 
by  this  contrast.  Elizabeth’s  spiritual  beauty  is 
heightened  by  the  rcpulsiveness  of  her  surroundings. 
The  abruptness  of  the  contrast  is  modified  by  the 
figures  of  the  attendant  ladies.  They  form  a con- 

^ Translated  from  the  German  of  Wolf  von  Goethe  by  Adelaide 
Procter. 


90 


MURILLO 


necting  link  between  the  ugliness  of  the  patients 
and  the  beauty  of  Elizabeth. 

The  portico  opens  out  of  doors  at  one  side,  and 
under  a covered  porch  in  the  distance  Ehzabeth  is 
again  seen  serving  a company  of  the  poor  at  table. 
This  distant  view  serves  an  important  artistic  pur- 
pose. It  not  only  furnishes  light  for  the  compo- 
sition, but  gives  an  effect  of  spaciousness. 

St.  Elizabeth  of  Hungary  is  one  of  a series  of 
eleven  pictures  painted  by  Murillo  to  adorn  the 
church  connected  with  the  Charity  Hospital  in 
Seville.  The  subjects  were  all  chosen  for  their  ap- 
propriateness to  the  place.  The  work  was  done  in 
the  later  years  of  his  life,  and  was  among  his  noblest 
productions.  A critic  has  said  that  for  grandeur 
of  style,  harmony  of  color,  and  grace  of  composition, 
it  would  be  difficult  to  name  an  equal  number  of 
pictures  by  any  artist  that  could  surpass  them.”  ^ 

The  life  of  St.  Elizabeth  had  a sad  ending.  Her 
husband  went  to  the  Crusades  and  died  in  a foreisTii 
land.  His  family  cast  her  out  of  the  castle,  and  she 
and  her  children  wandered  about  as  exiles.  At 
length  she  entered  the  order  of  St.  Francis,  and 
spent  her  declining  years  in  ministry  to  lepers. 


1 C.  B.  Curtis. 


XVI 


THE  PORTRAIT  OF  MURILLO 

The  painter  Murillo  was  what  we  call  in  our 
country  a self-made  man.”  Being  left  an  orphan 
before  he  was  eleven  years  old,  he  was  apprenticed 
at  an  early  age  to  his  uncle,  the  painter,  Juan  del 
Castillo.  The  boy  was  an  apt  pupil,  but  even  when 
he  had  learned  all  his  master  could  teach  him,  he 
was  far  from  being  an  artist.  For  a few  years  he 
earned  a scanty  livelihood  by  painting  cheap  pictures 
to  sell  in  the  market-place.  Then  came  a turning- 
point  in  his  life  in  this  wise. 

A young  man  named  Pedro  da  Moya,  who  had 
once  been  a fellow  student  with  Murillo  in  Castillo’s 
studio,  returned  to  Seville  after  six  months’  study 
under  the  Flemish  painter  Van  Dyck.  Murillo  saw 
with  astonishment  and  envy  how  wonderfully  his  old- 
time  companion  had  improved.  A new  world  of  art 
was  opened  to  him  in  the  copies  of  Van  Dyck’s 
paintings  which  the  traveller  had  brought  home. 
He  straightway  resolved  that  he,  too,  would  go  out 
into  the  world  to  learn  the  secrets  of  great  art. 

Rome  was  the  object  of  his  pilgrimage,  but  Rome 
was  a long  distance  from  Seville,  and  Murillo  had 
no  money.  The  young  man  was,  however,  too  much 
in  earnest  to  let  any  difficulties  discourage  him. 


92 


MURILLO 


Keeping  his  own  counsel,  he  procured  a piece  of 
linen,  cut  it  into  squares,  painted  the  squares  with 
])right  pictures,  and  by  selling  the  lot  obtained 
nioiiey  enough  for  his  immediate  needs.  This  was 
all  he  wanted.  He  was  young  and  courageous,  and 
he  set  forth  at  once  on  foot  towards  the  royal  city 
of  Madrid. 

It  was  a long  and  tedious  journey,  and  there  were 
mountains  to  cross,  but  he  came  at  last  to  the  great 
city.  He  had  intended  to  make  Madrid  only  a stop- 
ping-place on  his  longer  journey  to  Rome,  but  cir- 
cumstances now  chano;ed  his  mind.  The  court 
painter,  Velasquez,  himself  an  Andalusian  by  birth, 
offered  his  young  countryman  a home.  There  were 
plenty  of  great  pictures  to  see  in  the  royal  galleries, 
and  Murillo  gladly  accepted  the  offer. 

He  now  devoted  himself  to  studying  some  of  the 
masterpieces,  making  copies  of  many  of  the  works 
of  Ribera,  Van  Dyck,  and  Velasquez.  In  this  way 
he  progressed  so  well  that  he  thought  no  more  of 
Rome.  At  the  end  of  three  years  he  felt  himself 
ready  to  return  to  Seville  and  begin  his  career.  We 
have  already  seen  how  he  had  an  opportunity  to 
prove  his  ability,  in  the  decoration  of  a Francis- 
can church  in  Seville.  From  that  time  forward 
he  had  never  an  idle  moment.  His  life  was  full  of 
activity. 

He  was  a man  of  gentle,  winning  nature,  whom 
everybody  loved.  He  took  his  honors  simply,  and 
had  no  ambition  to  extend  liis  fame  beyond  the  bor- 
ders of  his  native  city.  He  loved  his  own  country 


THE  PORTRAIT  OF  MURILLO 


93 


and  his  own  people  with  passionate  loyalty.  Above 
all  things  else  he  was  a man  of  sincere  piety. 

We  do  not  know  many  of  the  detmls  of  his  private 
life,  except  that  he  was  married  in  1648,  and  had 
two  sons  and  a daughter.  When  the  children  grew 
up  they  begged  their  father  to  paint  them  a portrait 
of  himself.  This  is  the  picture  which  we  have  for 
our  frontispiece.  The  Latin  inscription  on  the  scroll 
below  records  the  circumstances  of  its  painting. 

We  are  glad  to  look  into  the  kindly  face  of  the 
great  painter.  He  is  by  no  means  a handsome  man, 
and  the  features  are  rather  coarse  and  heavy.  He 
came  from  the  common  people  whom  he  loved,  and 
there  seems  to  have  been  nothing  of  the  aristocrat 
in  his  make-up.  Yet  the  fine  high  brow  shows  that 
this  is  not  an  ordinary  man. 

His  bearing  and  expression  are  those  of  a man 
past  his  prime,  who  has  made  a success  of  life.  He 
shows  the  dignity  and  modest  self-satisfaction  to 
which  he  is  entitled.  Painted  as  it  was  for  his  own 
family,  the  portrait  represents  Murillo  as  he  wished 
to  be  remembered  by  those  who  knew  and  loved  him. 


PRONOUNCING  VOCABULARY  OF  PROPER  NAMES 
AND  FOREIGN  WORDS 


The  Diacritical  Marks  given  are  those  found  in  the  latest  edition  of  Webster’s  Inter- 
national Dictionary. 


EXPLANATION  OF  DIACKITICAL  MARKS. 


A Dash  (“)  above  the  vowel  denotes  the  long  sound,  as  in  fate,  eve,  time,  note,  use. 
A Dash  and  a Dot  ("’■)  above  the  vowel  denote  the  same  sound,  less  prolonged. 

A Curve  ('')  above  the  vowel  denotes  the  short  soimd,  as  in  5dd,  6nd,  ill,  odd,  up. 

A Dot  ( ’ ) above  the  vowel  a denotes  the  obscure  soimd  of  a in  past,  abate,  AmericA, 
A Double  Dot  (")  above  the  vowel  a denotes  the  broad  sound  of  a in  father,  alms. 

A Double  Dot  (..)  below  the  vowel  a denotes  the  sound  of  a in  ball. 

A Wave  (~)  above  the  vowel  e denotes  the  sound  of  e in  her. 

A Circumflex  Accent  ('')  above  the  vowel  o denotes  the  sound  of  o in  bOrn. 
a and  k denote  the  guttural  sound  of  ch  in  German. 

N indicates  that  the  preceding  vowel  has  the  French  nasal  tone. 

5 sounds  like  s. 

■e  sounds  like  k. 
g sounds  like  z. 
g is  hard  as  in  get. 
g is  soft  as  in  gem. 


AlcalA  (al  ka  la')* 

Almeria  (al  ma  re'a). 
Andalusia  (an  da  lob'zi  a). 


Elie'zgr. 
estilo  (es  te'16). 


Bacchus  (bak'us). 

Bethdehem. 

Bethu'el. 

Bologna  (bo  lon'ya). 


Franciscan  (fran  sfe'kan). 
frio  (fre'6). 

Galile^'an. 


Ca'diz. 

calido  (ka'le  d6). 

Castillo,  Juan  del  (hob  an 'del  kas 
tel'yo). 

Cor'dova. 

Corsini  (k6r  se'ne). 


genre  (zhaNr). 

Goethe,  Wolf  von  (volf  fon  gS'tu). 
Grana'da. 

Guadalquivir  (ga  dal  kwiv'gr). 


Ho'reb. 

Huelva  (wel'va). 
Hungary  (hung'ga  ri). 


Diego  (de  a'go). 
Donatel'lo. 


Jaen  (ha  en'). 
Joachim  (jo'a  kim). 
Justi  (hdbs'te). 


Ecce  Agnus  Dei  (ek'ke  ag'ndbs  da'e). 
Eisenach  (I'zen  aK). 


Ko'ran  (or  ko  ran'). 


96 


MURILLO 


La'ban. 

Lippi,  Filippo  (fe  lep'po  lep'pe). 
Lisbon  (liz'biin). 

Louvre  (lob'^vr). 

Madrid  (mad  ridO- 

MaPiiga. 

Moham'med. 

Moslems  (moz'lemz). 

Moya,  Pedro  da  (pa'dro  da  mo'ya). 
Murillo  (mob  rePyb). 

Mussulmans  (mus'sul  manz). 

Na'bbr. 

Naz^iireth. 


Rossetti  (ros  set'te). 

Rubens  (rob'benz). 

Sabbmon. 

iSeRorita  (san  y6  re'ta). 

Seville  (s6  vilO* 

Stabat  Mater  Speciosa  (sta'bat  mii'tar 
spe  ki  o'sa). 

Thurin'g^a. 

Tifioso  (ten  yo'sO). 

Titian  (tisb'an). 

Toulouse  (too  Idbz'). 

Van  Dyck  (van  dik')- 
vapor oso  (va  p6  rO^sD). 

Velasquez  (va  las'katb). 

Visigoths  (viz-'i  goths). 


Pad'ua. 

Perugino  (pa  rob  je^nb). 
Portuguese  (por'tu  gez). 

Rebek'ah. 

Rembrandt  (rem^brSnt). 
Ribera  (re  ba'rii). 


Wartburg  (vart'bdorG). 
Zacbarias  (zak  a rl'as). 


etc 

Electrotyped  and  Printed  hy  H.  O.  Houghton  &*  Co, 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A. 


THIRD  BALDER, 
PORTLAND 
ORE. 


